Your real estate website should have an easy way to search for properties through the MLS service in your local market. Although your local Board of Real Estate Agents may provide an IDX feed to the members it is oftentimes necessary to contract a 3rd Party IDX Solution Provider that makes integrating the MLS Search into your website a more simple procedure. There are a variety of IDX Solution Providers out there and I have personally called/contacted most of them on behalf of clients.

Many IDX Providers cater to limited geographic areas and others force you to use their proprietary website systems as part of the deal. For that reason, I only recommend using IDX Broker to Real Estate Agents that I work with. One added advantage is that IDX Broker has developed the IDX Broker Wordpress Plugin that allows you to easily connect your Wordpress website to the MLS Search functions in your area.

IDX Broker can be used on just about any type of real estate website and their service is separate from the actual website construction/develop process so you are not beholden to any particular vendor which is the ideal situation for having the most control over your website investment.

What Is IDX Broker And How Does It Work For Your Website?

IDX Broker is a service that takes your local Board of Real Estate Agents IDX/MLS data and provides a custom interface that is user-friendly for your average real estate professional. You have an Admin Login where you can add your leads, save searches and see all the statistics for how visitors are searching the MLS listings. IDX Broker has also developed an iPhone/iPad App that allows your prospects and clients an easy way to search properties right from the mobile device. You can try the App by searching iTunes for "IDX Broker" and then just add a 4-digit ID for a Real Estate Agent in your area who is an existing IDX Broker client.

Does IDX Broker Provide A Real Estate Website For You?

IDX Broker does not provide a ready-made website to go along with the IDX/MLS solution so you will have to find a solution on your own. There are many options available and a few reliable Wordpress real estate website developers out there that specialize in integrating the IDX Broker technology into either a custom-programmed website or technologies like Wordpress. Expect to pay around $2,500 - $5,000 USD for a custom real estate website when you contract a programmer/designer and an additional $250 - $300/month for follow-up Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Marketing to generate web visitors to your real estate website.

A big misconception of real estate professionals is that a constructed website automatically generates website traffic/visitors and will bring leads. This can not be further from the truth! Website development and website marketing are distinctly different just as in "brick and mortar" business construction and advertising. You must have an online marketing strategy in place to draw visitors to your website once it officially "launches". Keep in mind that search engine marketing is very competitive for real estate websites so be sure to have a concrete real estate marketing and SEO plan especially for the initial 3-month period after launching the website or you will be sorely disappointed.

I would only recommend Wordpress for newbie real estate professionals at this point because it gives the Real Estate Agent more control over updating your content and will save you a considerable amount of money since you don't have to pay a webmaster for every little text/image change on your website.

The key to success when paying someone to create your real estate website or trying to create your own is to pick the proper service providers. Here is what I recommend for each step: