How to Create an IDX Website for Realtors
If you’re in the real estate business and looking to create a website with all the required functionalities, you may have heard of IDX, software used to add MLS (Multiple Listing Service) listings to real estate websites. In this article, we’ll show you how to create an IDX website to attract visitors and potential customers, using minimum resources and without advanced technical expertise. You’ll learn about:
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If you’re a realtor, individual or working for a real estate agency, you have a couple of options regarding your online presence. You can have a simple website using one of the available platforms, like WordPress.com, Wix, etc. You can have a more complex and robust website made on WordPress.org, with your own hosting, custom domain name, etc. You can even have a custom-made website created by a professional web developer. Finally, you can have an IDX website for realtors built on WordPress, which is the best possible solution.
An IDX website is a real estate website that displays active listings directly from a Multiple Listing Service (MLS). A MLS is a database, maintained by real estate professionals, that holds information about properties currently on the market. Think of it as a giant, exclusive catalog of homes for sale. This info includes details like price, bedrooms, location, and photos. Only licensed real estate agents can access the complete MLS, but some basic info is displayed on public websites like Zillow or Trulia.
So, IDX acts as a connection between the MLS and public websites like the one you want to create. It allows websites to securely pull and display accurate, up-to-date listings directly from the MLS, without needing to manually submit each property. This guarantees that the users see the latest information and agents can showcase their listings to a wider audience, all on a single platform.
The advantages of these sorts of real estate websites are obvious. They are better for customers since they provide a more convenient search experience. They’re better for realtors, too, since they can be a tremendously useful tool for attracting new leads.
Here at Qode Interactive, we firmly believe that WordPress can be used to create any sort of website. Creating a website with WordPress is something that even non-experts can do, with proper guidance. There are tons of specialized real estate themes out there, and a lot of amazing real estate websites have been made with Qode themes, too. So, WordPress makes a great choice for realtors when it comes to boosting their online presence. But can it be used to make an IDX website for realtors? The short answer is: yes.
WordPress packs amazing functionality out of the box, but a lot of times it is the WordPress ecosystem of plugins and themes that really takes the experience to the next level, adding required design solutions and extending functionalities.
We’ll talk more about how this can be applied to IDX websites specifically, but now let’s see what you’ll need to get such a website up and running. The essentials include:
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A domain name
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Hosting service
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A real estate theme or a multipurpose theme with real estate module
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IDX plugins.
In order for your site to be accessible on the web, it needs to be hosted by a specialized service that offers all the required facilities, services, space and bandwidth for it – a web hosting service. We’ve written extensively about hosting so we invite you to check out our article on the difference between shared and managed WordPress hosting that should help you figure things out. If you’re on a tight budget, you should know that there are free options, but before you commit, please check out the pros and cons of free hosting. In any case, make sure to check out our guide on how to choose a hosting provider first.
As for the domain name, you can get one even before you figure out hosting. However, if you don’t already have a domain name paid and parked, bear in mind that a lot of hosting providers include domain names in their services so that may be a more convenient solution.
Once you have a hosting plan and domain name in place, it’s time to install WordPress (check out our guide on how to install WordPress manually) and set up your IDX website for realtors. Depending on the type of hosting you’ve chosen, you may already have WordPress installed, but either way after this step you can go ahead and install a theme of your choice.
The choice of WordPress theme for an IDX website for realtors is one of the most important choices, as the themes not only set a certain visual mood and engage the visitors in a certain way, but they also come equipped with specific elements, sections and functionalities designed to boost engagement and conversions.
For realtors, this includes above all a professional search functionality that allows visitors to quickly find the property they’re looking for, as well as all the necessary info about a property. Then there are individual property listings equipped with multiple photos, galleries, videos and sliders. Maps, contact forms and client testimonials are also a must.
The best real estate WordPress themes usually come equipped with all this, and more. You should always opt for a theme that, in addition to modern and professional design, ease of use and speed, also offers a comprehensive real estate module – a set of functionalities, sections and elements designed specifically for realtors. To get inspired and see some great themes in action, check out our list of the best real estate websites made with Qode themes.
Make sure the theme you pick has good reviews, comes with professional customer support, that it’s regularly updated and that has a good performance and speed score.
Sometimes, a WordPress theme for real estate will also include IDX/MLS integration, which is a plus, but in majority of cases this functionality is added via plugins.
Before we check out a couple of excellent IDX plugins for a real estate website, let’s quickly go through what IDX and MLS are and how they work.
We said previously that IDX is software that allows site visitors to go through real estate listings in a specific area. These listings are pulled from MLS (Multiple Search Listing) platforms, which are real estate portals updated by local realtors. These are comprehensive, detailed and large aggregations of listings and it’s the realtors’ responsibility to keep them up to date – after all, it’s in their best interest. MLS platforms are for realtors only, and if they want to add these listings to their own websites, they need to use IDX as a sort of bridge.
The easiest way to create an IDX-based real estate website is to first create the site using WordPress, as we described above, and then use one of the several available IDX plugins to add the functionality. Here are a couple of our favorites:
Realtyna Organic IDX
Realtyna Organic IDX + WPL Real Estate is a freemium plugin designed to manage property listings by adding MLS/IDX/RESO/VOW/XML/DDF functionalities to any WordPress website. With the free version, you can easily pull listing features, addresses, appliances, neighborhood info, videos and images and display them on your website. The plugin supports all MLS providers in North America.
With the paid version, which costs $199 (one-time payment, lifetime updates and one-year support), you can host all the IDX/MLS data on your own server, which is ideal for realtors who want more control over their data.
DS IDX
The WordPress IDX Real Estate Listings & MLS Search takes pride in being the only IDX plugin that offers live support, a custom marketing solution and IDX listing feeds from more than 730 MLS platforms in Canada and the United States. The plugin adds user-friendly search widgets with a map and a slideshow of featured properties. Listings are comprehensive and informative, and can include school information and similar properties in the desired area.
This plugin also features useful lead-capture tools, like forms for scheduling property showings, tools for adding favorite listings, saving property search criteria for the next visit, and more.
Note that this is not a free plugin. It does come with a free 7-day trial. The basic package costs $59.95/month, and includes live listing shortcodes, an interactive IDX widget and indexable city and neighborhood pages. The Pro version costs $89.95/month and includes full IDX search interface, flexible site registration options, saved searches and favorites, lead capture tools, additional widgets and CRM with lead behavior insights. The Pro Plus plan costs $299.95/month and includes everything from the Pro version plus dedicated help from digital marketing and SEO experts.
Showcase IDX
Showcase IDX Real Estate Search is a freemium solution for real estate agents and companies, providing them with portal-quality listings search functionality, fully integrated into WordPress and managed from the WordPress admin. It basically works as a CRM solution, on top of providing the IDX search functionality. The listings are responsive out of the box and fully customizable to match the style of your theme. You can create neighborhood and community pages and import MSL in batches, with custom styling for each batch. Showcase IDX is the only IDX that allows for multiple polygon search, with customizable map elements.
Showcase IDX comes with a free 10–day trial, and the paid plans start at $74.95.
MLS Import
With MLS Import, you can easily connect to the MLS platforms you choose and import listings in batches, using your own criteria, and sync their information. The plugin is created specifically for WordPress and can be used with most real estate themes. It is built on the latest RESO API technology, which is important since RETS is a deprecated data standard that no longer works. Selected properties are imported directly to your domain and images and videos are served through a CDN, which improves performance and guarantees a fast user experience. MLS Import works with 800+ platforms across North America and the listings changes are synced hourly, guaranteeing your content will always be up to date.
MLS Import has a 30-day free trial, after which, if you decide to use the plugin, you will pay $49/month.
Wrapping It Up
After you’ve installed and activated the plugin of your choice and imported the listings from MLS platforms, you’ll be ready to go. At this point, it’s time to grow your audience and turn them into customers. Check out our tips for WordPress lead generation and consider using some of the lead generation plugins for the platform. One thing you’ll want to do is promote your website on social media and use email marketing. For realtors, it’s also important to implement proper local SEO techniques. Don’t forget to monitor your metrics, as they can tell you with certainty which aspects of your website are performing well and which ones need improvement. Many of the IDX plugins come with built-in insights, especially those with the user registration option. Finally, make sure to check out Qode Magazine regularly since mastering WordPress is a sure way to get your business out there, attract more customers and close more deals.
