August 25th, 2011

The Creig Northrop Team, of Long & Foster Chooses Onboard Informatics to power Lifestyle Search Widget and Neighborhood Navigator on their state-of-the-art website, designed by SM Sold

By Stacey Ret, Director of Marketing

Innovative search experience and community pages allows website visitors to find the neighborhoods that best meet their lifestyle needs in Maryland, and surrounding areas

August 25, 2011 – New York, NY. Onboard Informatics, the premier data and technology services provider to top-tier real estate, media, and technology companies, is supplying robust community information through Neighborhood Navigator, as well as Lifestyle Search for The Creig Northrop Team of Long & Foster; the top real estate team in the state of Maryland, and #2 in the United States.  These content solutions were a part of the launch of their new website, www.northropteam.com, designed by the talented real estate marketing agency, SM Sold.

The Lifestyle Search Widget, an innovative home buyer search tool, powered by Onboard Informatics, allows The Creig Northrop Team website visitors to search for a home based on specific criteria that is important to them – excellent schools, family friendliness, a fun & hip area, golfer’s paradise, to name a few – prior to searching for a home in a neighborhood that may not possess the qualities important to them.

“We are aware, now more than ever before, that 90 percent of shoppers start their home search online,” said Creig Northrop, principal of The Creig Northrop Team. “We are the leading real estate resource in the Maryland and Washington, D.C. area and that means staying ahead of the curve and meeting our technology savvy consumers where they are most comfortable. We listened to our customers and what they want is an innovative, five-star website that combines all of the great services we offer.”

Lifestyle Search, paired with Neighborhood Navigator is a perfect marriage of two solutions.  Neighborhood Navigator provides the property detail pages, which feature easy-to-read graphs and charts of community information, including recent home sales data, population demographics, school information, crime data, and nearby establishments, allowing the homebuyer to receive a full picture of the area, all before falling in love with a home.

“We are thrilled that The Creig Northrop Team has chosen to feature Onboard’s industry-leading Lifestyle Search feature and data solutions on its state-of-the-art website,” states Marc Siden, CEO, Onboard Informatics. “As a leading real estate firm in Maryland, they have the responsibility to their consumers as well as their agents, to provide cutting-edge technology and maintain a competitive edge in the marketplace.”

“Today, real estate professionals need the advantage of technology to compete. SM Sold offers a web-based content management system that provides Internet marketing and social media tools to keep them connected with prospective buyers and sellers,” states Joseph Freedman, Sales Director, SM Sold.

About Onboard Informatics

Since 2001, Onboard Informatics has provided comprehensive local, regional and national real estate data solutions, powerful Web tools and Web services to some of the most innovative companies in real estate, publishing, and technology.  Onboard delivers seamless integration of lifestyle search, property listings, community, school, neighborhood, geographic and demographic information to support clients in achieving business objectives on Web and mobile platforms.  Privately held since its founding, Onboard is located in the heart of the world’s financial center in the Wall Street area of New York City.  For more information about Onboard Informatics visit www.onboardinformatics.com.

About The Creig Northrop Team of Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc.

The Creig Northrop Team, a part of Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc. is the #1 real estate team in the state of Maryland and #2 in the United States. Serving the Baltimore/Washington, DC region, The Creig Northrop Team has built a reputation for expertise and a track-record for results. For more information regarding buying and selling services in the area contact The Creig Northrop Team of Long & Foster 410.884.8362 or visit www.northropteam.com.

SM Sold

Located in Irvine, California, SM Sold is a real estate marketing agency with more than 10 years of industry experience.  The company serves real estate agents and brokers both locally and nationally and builds successful brands through websites, e-campaigns, printed materials, social media and online/offline strategies.  To contact SM Sold, call (888) 474-2004, or email contact@smsold.com.

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Tags: community data, data, lifestyle search, neighborhood navigator, neighborhoods, real estate data.

April 11th, 2011

Onboard Informatics Announces A Technology Learning Series

By Stacey Ret, Director of Marketing

A weekly webinar program focusing on utilizing data and technology to drive revenue

April 11, 2011 – New York, NY. Onboard Informatics, the premier data and technology services provider to top-tier real estate, media and technology companies, has launched a Technology Learning Series program, specifically for professionals in the real estate industry.

The program will feature two 30 minute webinars each week beginning early April, with a wide variety of hot and trending topics, as well as share information that Onboard has learned over the years through working with hundreds of large, middle and small companies. Each week one topic will be addressed, and offered twice that week allowing people options for attendance.

“Our Technology Learning Series Program is an ideal way for real estate professionals to gain information about a variety of topics that can drive traffic to their site, convert visitors to consumers, and stay in touch with those consumers long after they purchase a home,” stated Marc Siden, CEO of Onboard Informatics. Siden continues, “These webinars are designed to take an abstract topic, such as Lifestyle Search, and break it down into a comprehensible and tangible tool – all the while delivering the key points in 30 minutes.”

Topics include:

April 12th & 14th:  Getting the Most Value from Neighborhood Information

April 19^th & 21^st:  All the Rage — What is a Lifestyle Search Widget & How can it improve my business?

April 26^th & 28^th:  How to Improve SEO using Data

May 3^rd & 5^th: School Content – It’s Free. Why do I Need Enhanced School Content on my website?

May 10^th & 12^th: Printable Reports: The Importance, the Value, and Options

May 17^th & 19^th: Lifestyle Search: The Pandora for Real Estate

May 24^th & 26^th: Neighborhood Information – for Canada

Webinars take place each Tuesday and Thursday at 3pm EST. The next webinar, “Getting the Most Value from Neighborhood Information?” will take place Tuesday, April 12^th . Those interested may register here: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/932450858

For additional information on the topics, please visit: http://blog.onboardinformatics.com/2011/04/onboards-technology-learning-series-kicks-off-today/

About Onboard Informatics
Since 2001, Onboard Informatics has provided comprehensive local, regional and national real estate data solutions, powerful Web tools and Web services to some of the most innovative companies in the real estate, publishing, and technology.  Onboard delivers seamless integration of property listings, community, school, neighborhood, geographic and demographic information to support clients in achieving business objectives on Web and mobile platforms.  Privately held since its founding, Onboard is located in the heart of the world’s financial center in the Wall Street area of New York City.  For more information about Onboard Informatics visit www.onboardinformatics.com.

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Tags: community data, lifestyle search, listings, neighborhood data, real estate data, real estate market, school information.

November 17th, 2009

BusinessWeek’s Best Places to Raise Your Kids, 2010

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Director

Our second annual collaboration with BusinessWeek to find the best cities to raise kids is out today. The 2010 Best Places to Raise Your Kids list selected one town (and occasionally two runners up) from each of the 50 states for parents looking to give their kids a great education and strong community within modest financial means.

The methodology gave the greatest weight to affordability, safety, and school test scores. Towns with populations above 45,000 and median incomes between $40,000 and $125,000 were considered for the top cities list. BusinessWeek also considered the cultural grain of the communities when picking top towns – meaning diverse cities with lots of museums, parks, theaters, and other amenities were given high marks.

Our team created an index based on low crime, high test scores, diversity, population and cost of living thresholds to use as a screening method to help determine the 50 Best Places according to the additional BusinessWeek criteria.

The highest rated score was a town of 600,000 just outside of Chicago. Tinley Park, Illinois was touted by editors and residents alike for its affordability, access to Chicago, connectedness, and top notch schools.

“Most of the towns we chose are new to the list,” said real estate writer Prashant Gopal, noting a few returners to the Best Places list.

The strong reactions from readers last year prompted BusinessWeek to encourage online discussion in the story’s comment section. Have a look at the results and be sure to let us know how your state’s winner stacks up in your mind.

Tags: Best Places, Best Places to Raise Kids, BusinessWeek, community data, media services.

November 4th, 2009

Onboard Informatics’ Localized Real Estate Content Makes Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate iPhone Application ‘One-of-a-Kind’

By Stacey Ret, Director of Marketing

Licensing Deal Helps Real Estate Brand to Better Meet Home Buyers’ Needs

NEW YORK, November 4, 2009 — Onboard Informatics, the premier data services and technology company for top-tier organizations in real estate, media and technology, is the provider of robust community information for a new iPhone application, Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Home Selection Assistant.

Onboard’s unique products and services help strengthen broker and consumer relationships, streamline the information gathering process, and better enable real estate buyers and sellers to make informed decisions.  As with many Onboard clients,  Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate is using these highly regarded products to provide home buying consumers and real estate agents with the vital community and school information they desire  all from one source.

This new iPhone application ensures that homebuyers now have on-the-go access to  community populations, average income levels, housing trends, education and school information, crime statistics, localized weather, church locations, recreational amenities, recent home sales, nearby restaurants, and more.

Now, a buyer can stand on the sidewalk outside of any home and immediately figure out, not only if the schools are within walking distance, but also receive the closest locations of the grocery store, bank and park.

“Onboard is delighted to bring its services directly to the end consumer through this accessible and useful iPhone application,” said Marc Siden, CEO of Onboard. “Our content has consistently been a natural fit with the Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate brand, which is focused on consumers’ lifestyles.  This new application is just one more step in our continuing effort to partner with clients and respond to specific consumer needs through carefully designed and flexible programs.”

The Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate iPhone app exemplifies the versatility of Onboard’s products and opens up  new areas of potential growth for both companies.

“We sought to provide homebuyers across the country with an application that could seamlessly fit into their home buying process and provide them with the tools they need to make the research-to-purchase process simpler,” said Sherry Chris, president and CEO of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate. “We are confident Onboard’s exclusive community information will help us to achieve this strategy.”

The Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate iPhone application, Home Selection Assistant, is available for free on www.bhgrealestate.com/iphone.

Below are a few screenshots of the iphone app

About Onboard Informatics

Since 2001, Onboard Informatics has provided comprehensive local, regional and national real estate data solutions, powerful web tools and web services to some of the most innovative companies in the real estate, media and technology industries.  Onboard combines its expertise in data aggregation, standardization, and integration with expert consulting, transforming the complexity of data into meaningful solutions to support their clients in achieving business objectives.  Privately held since its founding, Onboard is located in the heart of the world’s financial center in the Wall Street area of New York City.  For more information about Onboard Informatics, or to request a demo, visit http://onboardinformatics.com/.

About Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate

Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate is a residential real estate company with a growing network of local brokerage offices.  Its real estate agents and brokers offer professional, knowledgeable advice and services for home buyers and sellers.  The company’s Web site offers real estate search, including MLS listings for selected locations.  You can also find in-depth articles about buying, selling and owning real estate at http://www.bhgrealestate.com/.

Tags: Better Homes and Gardens, community data, iphone, iPhone apps, Onboard Informatics, phone apps, Real Estate, school data.

October 5th, 2009

Conan O’Brien vs. Cory Booker: Our Winner

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Director

Last Tuesday, Conan O’Brien was banned from the Newark Airport. His offense? Badmouthing the city of Newark. Apparently to Mayor Cory Booker, talking smack on Newark ranks right up there with carting explosives into EWR. In case you missed it, here was the exchange that prompted Conan’s ban.

“The Mayor of Newark, NJ, wants to set up a citywide program to improve residents’ health,” Conan joked on the Tonight Show monologue last week. “The health care program would consist of a bus ticket out of Newark.”

Mayor Booker then took it to YouTube to release his anger:

Conan certainly isn’t the first to slam Brick City, and Booker took the typical politician gloves off for an entertaining spot. So who reigns victorious in this viral video war? Our Director of Data Operations, who shall to remain nameless to protect his identity and freedom to visit Newark Airport, dug in to our own community information databases to find out who really won this battle royal. Booker says:

“Conan, you fail to understand our city is one of the fastest growing cities in the Northeast. We  have strong neighborhoods, strong people, record reductions in violent crime. We have a city on the rise.”

Newark’s overall violent crime has not decreased as Mayor Booker suggests. Keep in mind the national average of violent crimes per 100,000 people is 195.

While the city has seen drops of crime within certain categories, such as the low murder rate in 2008, overall numbers are climbing. (No word yet for 2009; the most recent FBI data covers through 2008 only.)

As for a city on the rise, we need to know exactly what is rising besides the smoke from Mayor Booker’s ears following the late-night debacle. Between 2007 and last year, the number of households in Newark dropped 3%.

On the bright side, Newark is the home of Rutgers School of Law-Newark, a U.S. News & World Report top tier law school. Newark Downtown’s Prudential Center, built in 2007 on Booker’s watch, hosts the New Jersey Devils and over 200 events per year. Almost 5% of Newark is covered by parks; the two largest being Weequahic Park and Branch Brook Park. It is a good place to start a business, as some parts of its Urban Enterprise Zone enjoy a 3.5% tax rate as opposed to the statewide rate of 7%.

Unfortunately foreclosures in Essex County, in which Newark is by far the largest city, don’t help Mayor Booker’s sentiments. Onboard’s foreclosure index reported above-average foreclosures for Essex compared to both the U.S. and New Jersey averages.

With all of that said, the outcome of round one of this late-night fight? Conan-1, Mayor Booker-0. Rest assured: no bias went into this analysis, as the handling and mishandling of New Jersey is a sensitive subject in our office.

As for the next round of banter between Conan and Mayor Booker, well, we’ll let you judge that one for yourself.

Tags: community data, Conan O'Brien, Cory Booker, crime data, foreclosure data, New Jersey, Newark, population data.

September 29th, 2009

America’s Best Affordable Places to Retire

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Director

An astounding 93% of the growth in the U.S. labor force through 2016 will be among workers over 55, according to a recent Pew Research Center study. With more Americans delaying retirement, U.S. News & World Report chose to focus on affordable destinations in the third annual Best Places to Retire list.

The 2009 Best Affordable Places to Retire, powered by Onboard Informatics demographic and economic indicators, reflects the shifting expectations of retirees. Rather than focusing on popular (and pricey) retirement hubs, U.S. News selected affordable high-value spots with great amenities. In order to make the cut, cities needed high-quality healthcare and elder-care facilities and outstanding cultural and learning programs.

The analysis didn’t stop there. The U.S. News editorial team conducted interviews with residents in the top towns to get a true picture of each city.

Tucson offers great outdoor activities and affordable housing for retiring seniors.

Realizing that retirement goals are extremely personal, the new U.S. News package also includes an interactive search tool for retirees to find towns that conform to their lifestyle needs and preferences.

The Best Places to Retire search application weighs a user’s criteria against a database of 2,000 places with populations of at least 10,000 and crime equal to or below the national average. Complete methodology is found here.

Listed alphabetically, here are the top 10 places to retire:

• Ann Arbor, Michigan
• Asheville, North Carolina
• Aurora, Colorado
• Columbia, South Carolina
• Columbus, Ohio
• Eugene, Oregon
• Fort Worth, Texas
• Jacksonville, Florida
• Kansas City, Missouri
• Tucson, Arizona

The Best Affordable Places, featured in October’s U.S. News & World Report magazine, hit newsstands today.

Tags: Best Affordable Places to Retire, Best Places, community data, neighborhood data, relocation, US News.

September 18th, 2009

Top Cities for Political Junkies

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Director

If political involvement ranks high in your value system, you’re likely compelled to live in the company of like-minded peers to engage and organize with. In its latest community feature, U.S. News points its lens at the top 10 Cities for Political Junkies for all those who prefer C-SPAN and Gallup to ESPN and E!.

The list is based primarily on Onboard Informatics data measuring household involvement in current events and political affairs. U.S. News screened the index for cities and towns with populations of more than 50,000 and further filtered the towns using voter registration statistics. The list is hardly a relocation tool for the far ends of the political spectrum; what the editorial team uncovered in their search were patches of purple.

“Although polarization might be ubiquitous on television, in blogs, and on the radio, it does not follow that the most politically active and politically interested people live in polarized communities, interacting only with those who agree with them. When U.S. News looked for the places where residents have the greatest interest in political affairs, it wasn’t the heavily red or blue areas that popped up. Sure, there are plenty of political junkies in very liberal places like Portland, Ore., or very conservative places like small towns in Texas, but the places on our list are in more purple regions: Orange County, Calif., an area that is red relative to its deep-blue home state, or Fairfax County, Va., a county that traditionally elects Republicans but went heavily for Obama in the last presidential election.”

The slideshow feature details why places like San Ramon, CA and Brookline, MA are perfect for political gurus.

Tags: community data, relocation, US News.

July 24th, 2009

USA Weekend’s Top Places to Retire

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Director

USA Weekend Magazine, in collaboration with Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation, released its Top Places to Retire based on Onboard Informatics data in its July 26 issue. The top cities list, aimed at young retirees, is based on recreation, weather, health resources, crime, and cost of living data provided by Onboard.

The article is based on an April Coldwell Banker study noting home purchase increases among retirees under 60 taking advantage of low home prices. The national study revealed a trend of 50-somethings leasing retirement homes early “until they are prepared to move permanently.”

USA Weekend’s top 5 markets to buy now, retire later are:

1) Helena, Montana (pop. 28,726)
2) Pensacola, Florida (pop. 54,283)
3) Creve Coeur, Missouri (pop. 16,933)
4) Traverse City, Michigan (pop. 14,339)
5) Butte-Silver Bow, Montana (pop. 31,967)

Be sure to pick up a copy of USA Weekend on newsstands this weekend.

Tags: community data, relocation, USA Weekend.

July 14th, 2009

CNN Money, Best Places to Live 2009, powered by Onboard

By Jackie Berg, Marketing Director

Which small towns in America have weathered the economic storm and continued to provide residents with affordable living, great educations, low crime and more? CNN Money has outlined the top 100 in the 2009 Best Places to Live list powered by Onboard Informatics data.

The top 100 list accompanies a set of interactive community features to show readers the best places to find rich singles, six-figure towns, the most affordable towns and more. Onboard’s employment-related data powered special content for financially-minded readers, a special focus of this year’s Best Places list.

World class trails, weekly street fairs, and great weather helped Louisville, CO claim this year's #1 spot.

Our data team worked closely with CNN to provide housing, financial, quality of life and other data for the filters they selected to produce the most concise and accurate information possible. The piece also included data from our exclusive partner GreatSchools, the leading provider of school information and reviews.

Be sure to check out some of the other additions to the basic functions of the features and top 100 list for 2009:

• Expanded interactivity beyond the typical comment section with an integrated Facebook application for residents to share thoughts and become fans of their favorite towns.
• The “Find Your Best Places” applications, allowing users to factor in lifestyle preferences into a customized list of suitable small towns to consider packing up to. Even if relocation is not in your near future, it can’t hurt to take a look at which towns fit the bill. (I just may be headed to Cambridge, MA for a long weekend!)

Onboard works closely with each of our media clients to develop custom solutions that drive readership. For more information on our media solutions, please contact us at 646.747.4273 or info@onboardinformatics.com.

Tags: Best Places to Live, CNN Money, community data, relocation.

June 23rd, 2009

Seattle East: A Comparison of New York City and Seattle

By John Paul Murphy, Content Services Manager

If you haven’t noticed, there is a new trend in New York and it’s not being set by hipsters. If you’re not too sure what it is, the puddles outside your apartment that have become permanent reservoirs are a dead give away.

However, if you’re still unclear, the new trend is rain. This new trend began to make me wonder: are we becoming Seattle? We have more coffee shops than employed people, I’ve been noticing more flannel then normal, and New Yorkers’ tans have subsided to a fine milky paste (although it seems to still be very sunny in Staten Island).

If we are becoming Seattle East, what are some other similarities we have to our soon-to-be conjoined twin Seattle?

Seattle, Washington

• Area: 83.87
• Population Density:  6,941
• Air Pollution Index: 108
• Violent Crime Index: 130
• Median Home Sale Value, Q1 2009: $359,825
• 2009 Fair Market Rent: $844 (1 bedroom)
• Median Household Income: $54,978
• Cost of Living Index: 104.9

New York City, New York

• Area: 303.31
• Population Density: 27,290
• Air Pollution Index: 112
• Violent Crime Index: 176
• Median Home Sale Value, Q1 2009: $446,808
• 2009 Fair Market Rent: $1,216 (1 bedroom)
• Median Household Income: $47,525
• Cost of Living Index: 149.2

New York, put down the coffee and return the flannel because it’s safe to say that New York is not becoming Seattle East. With their higher income, lower cost of living, better air, and less crowded city, they can only hope to be New York City.  But until summer weather actually decides to descend upon us, chase those rainy blues away with a good ole movie night; I suggest a classic,  ”When Harry Met Sally” cause everyone one knows “Sleepless in Seattle” will not stand the test of time.

Tags: community data, content, data, data comparison, Onboard Informatics.