New Website Offers Trend-Driven Database of Midlands Real Estate Transactions
March 31, 2009
COLUMBIA, SC – March 31, 2008 — MidlandsTrends.com, which previously operated under the name CountyDownload.com, has launched a newly redesigned website that provides free access to real estate trends in Richland and Lexington counties.
The site, which compiles data from more than 55,000 county real estate records, allows users to conduct free searches by more than 20 categories such as price, zip code, acres, property type and street name. Improvements include a more user-friendly search engine, the ability to simultaneously search both Richland and Lexington counties and the elimination of deed transfers under $5.
“Our goal with relaunching the website was to provide more accurate and relevant information,” said founder Terry Peterson, who also co-owns the home construction tracking program www.HomeBuildingProjectPlan.com. “Though we work primarily with commercial real estate professionals, we also felt that it was important to share this data with the public during a time when real estate knowledge is crucial.”
Anyone can register for a free account, which displays three, non-downloadable records at a time for property ranging from single family homes to offices, retail space and warehouses. Upgraded accounts allow clients to see 100 records at a time and import them into their own databases. Information is only pulled from official county records, which creates a short lag time but ensures stringent accuracy.
To help make sense of all the numbers, MidlandsTrends.com also disseminates monthly, quarterly and yearly trends reports via Peterson’s blog at http://blog.MidlandsTrends.com. Some of his findings from 2008 include a 27% decrease in fourth quarter single family home sales with prices decreasing throughout the year; recovering multifamily sales after a dismal third quarter; and a nine-fold increase in second quarter restaurant sales prices. Not surprisingly, retail started the year strong but saw significant yearlong drops in sales and fourth quarter drops in prices, while hard-to-finance land sales decreased and prices stagnated.
For more information on MidlandsTrends, visit www.MidlandsTrends.com and click on “FAQ.” For media inquiries or to arrange an interview with Peterson, contact Jacque Riley at [email protected] or 803-227-0914.
