JUNE 2010 | www.opp.org.uk


Developer profi le SIMA feels a bit of a buzz By STEPHEN HARRIS


Despite Spanish property show SIMA continuing its downward trend in visitor numbers last weekend, attendees reported that a little bit of buzz had returned to the exhibition. Organisers reported around 25% fewer


visitors than last year at the four-day show in Madrid, but there was a small increase in the number of exhibitors to just over 200. This follows a halving in visitor numbers at last year’s show. International companies also continued


to shun the show, with the number of foreign exhibitors dropping from around 70 to 51 from across 16 countries. Social housing and distressed stock


were the big themes for the domestic side of the show, while Latin American and the Caribbean took a more dominant position among international companies.


Signs of recovery “There were not as many visitors


as before but they were better quality and this year we started to see signs of recovery in the second home market,” said SIMA’s international manager, Alex Escudero. “Distressed was a part of the show


but there were fewer banks than on previous occasions and there was


The number of exhibitors at SIMA rose slightly as coastal developers began to return


also an increase in the number of exhibitors offering second homes on the coast. Many of the visitors who came already had a lot of information about the product.” The improved atmosphere came from


the fact that buyers had a better idea of what they were looking for, according to Manuel Perez of the Spanish Homes Network – who spoke at one of the show’s panel discussions. “Considering that the hall was


smaller than in previous years, there was a lot of traffi c in the aisles,” he said. “The numbers at our discussion sessions were very similar to 2009 but people were not focused and didn’t


know what to expect last year. “Now people know the market and


are looking for bargains. The visitors had gained a lot of information and qualifi ed themselves before coming.”


Latin force Although the show attracted fi rms


from countries including Italy, Germany, Hungary and Cape Verde ... it was the Hispanic and Caribbean companies that turned out in force. Brazil and Uruguay were each represented by over 15 fi rms while the Dominican Republic had eight companies in a designated area sponsored by the country’s tourism ministry.


iPhone property apps go global


Hamptons is to become the latest agent to target international buyers with an application for the iPhone. The company was the fi rst agent


to offer UK buyers access to foreign property through the Apple device, but has now expanded the app’s capabilities to reach a global audience. The fi rst version of the app has attracted over 9,000 downloads in the fi rst few months since its launch. “We listened and have responded


to feedback from our customers and continue to enhance the app,” said Hamptons’ online marketing manager Alice Johnson. Providing an app gave buyers the same


search functions as a website but with three advantages – portability, accessibility and instant access, she added.


“An extensive marketing campaign


is in place to promote the app, generate interest and attract new clients. [The company] will be running national advertising, promotion on our websites, email campaigns and in-branch promotions across the Hamptons network.”


Global race iPhone apps have begun to take off among international property fi rms since the start of 2010. Following Hamptons’ initial launch, Knight Frank released an app that detected where in the world users were and showed them nearby properties. Overseas property portal HomesGoFast.com has also joined the iPhone race in recent weeks, providing


access to stock from agents, developers and vendors in over 70 countries. HomesGoFast director Nicholas Marr


said: “ We are the fi rst UK-based property company to release an app that gives access to properties offered not only from agents but also private individuals selling an overseas property.”


INDUSTRY Media news | 19


NEWS IN BRIEF Rightmove’s pay-per-lead


UK-based portal Rightmove Overseas is introducing a pay-per-lead model for the fi rst time, in partnership with online marketing fi rm Lead Galaxy. But this will only be for agents in the site’s least popular countries where enquiry levels are low. According to Rightmove’s head of overseas, Robin Wilson, “It wouldn’t make sense to do this for our core markets - they get such good traffi c.”


Facebook for property


A new property website combines a portal with a Facebook-style social network for buyers. Real-Buzz. com, launched by the fi rm behind global listings exchange Immobel, recommends nearby agents to users as they search for property, while agents can search through the site’s registered user database. “Today’s buyers want to control the conversation, exchange information, and compare,” says CEO Janet Choynowski.


APITS revamps website


A Place in the Sun has stepped back from the pay-per-lead model with a revamp of its listings website. The media company has partnered with portal The Move Channel to give agents a choice of subscription or pay- per-lead fees. “The more options you can give people the better,” said APITS managing director Andy Bridge.


OPP signs fractional deal


OPP is to take its support for shared ownership to the next level as media partner with the Fractional Summit USA. The deal with the event’s organiser, Fractional Life, will see OPP cover the upcoming conference in the magazine and promote it with print and web advertising. “I’ve seen the European Fractional Summit quickly become the ‘must attend’ fractional conference for the region,” said OPP’s CEO, Xavier Wiggins.


Realtors get social


Hamptons is relaunchings its iPhone app, which has already attracted more than 9,000 downloads


THE number of Realtors in the US using social networking websites has gone up by over 40% in the last year. More than half of NAR members use social media, up from over a third percent in 2009, according to a recent industry survey.


INDUSTRY


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