Another great website to showcase development for prospective buyers and renters. Checkout the “My Neighborhood” section with an interactive map on the area.

First import the following classes from the Google Base Client library.

using Google.GData.Client;

using Google.GData.GoogleBase;

To insert items, you need to be authenticated. Specify your Google Base account name and password to GBaseService as follows. You can use your Gmail account but you have to first sign into Google Base to activate the account.

GBaseService service = new GBaseService("Application Name", developerKey);

service.setUserCredentials("username", "password"); 

The next step is to create the GBaseEntry you would like to insert.

GBaseEntry entry = new GBaseEntry();

entry.Title.Text = "My Title";

entry.Content.Content = description;

It is important to set the ItemType to “Housing”.

entry.GBaseAttributes.ItemType = "Housing"; 

Now set the other attributes. To see a list of all the Google Base attributes go to http://base.google.com/support/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=78170.

FloatUnit unit = new FloatUnit(price, "usd");

entry.GBaseAttributes.Price = unit;

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddTextAttribute("feature", feature);

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddImageLink(imgLink);

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddTextAttribute("property_type", propertyType);

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddTextAttribute("listing_type", listType);

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddTextAttribute("listing_status", listStatus);

FloatUnit sunit = new FloatUnit(sqft, "square ft.");

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddFloatUnitAttribute("square_feet", sunit);

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddFloatAttribute("bathrooms", baths);

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddIntAttribute("bedrooms", beds);

entry.GBaseAttributes.Location = "Address, City, State xxxxx USA ";

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddTextAttribute("mls_listing_id", listingID);

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddTextAttribute("broker", listBroker);

entry.GBaseAttributes.AddTextAttribute("agent", listAgent); 

Finally, insert this GBaseEntry object into the Items feed.

 GBaseEntry ent = service.Insert(GBaseUriFactory.Default.ItemsFeedUri, entry); 

The method service.Insert returns the item you just inserted. The Google Base server assigns pre-computed attributes for your entry such as the creation date and time, the author, and most importantly, the identifier (or URL) of the new entry. The entry may take a few hours to publish so it may not be searchable immediately.

Now you can search for your listings on Google Base by connecting to a snippets feed URL and then interpreting the resulting atom feed. This can be done programmatically by creating a GBaseService object and executing a query on it.

GBaseService service = new GBaseService("Application Name", developerKey);

GBaseQuery query = new GBaseQuery(GBaseUriFactory.Default.SnippetsFeedUri); 

The following query will get single family homes for sale within a 5 mile radius of San Francisco CA.

query.GoogleBaseQuery = @"[item type:housing] [listing type:for sale] [property_type:single] [location:@""San Francisco, CA, USA"" + 5mi]";

You can also set the sort by and order, number of results, and search start index.

query.NumberToRetrieve = 20;

query.StartIndex = 0;

query.AscendingOrder = true;

query.OrderBy = "price(float USD)";

Lastly, execute the query and save the atom feed into a readable xml format. This can be parsed and displayed on a web page.

XmlTextReader reader = new XmlTextReader(query.Uri.AbsoluteUri);

XmlDocument doc = new XmlDocument();

doc.Load(reader); 

Pretty simple right? Now you can have your listings searchable on Google along with your website.

IDX gives MLS Participants the tools they need to display each others’ listings on their Internet websites. Under the IDX real estate system, brokers exchange consent to display each others listings on the Internet. You have full control over which real estate listings you display. Adding a MLS search (IDX) to your existing site is the fastest and easiest way to boost your business! In today’s real estate market having an IDX solution that includes interactive mapping, saved searches and email notifications is a necessity that all real estate agents must offer. With IDX, agents can offer their clients greater service while optimizing their own exposure and leads.

You must think that maintaining a web site with so many features will be a little complex and require that you have previous knowledge of computer programming. This is not the case at all. It’s simple, and requires very little time. Maintaining a web site can be a tough task especially when you have clients to satisfy, homes to show, and a hectic daily routine. Using Webservices with IDX can automate your web site’s content and offer  visitors to your site a true interactive experience. Every site needs content! Content is the reason your users will keep coming back, but it requires a lot of time and money to keep fresh and up to date. IDX Web Services makes it simple – full content delivered seamlessly to your site. Fresh content brings your website to life, and your site will attract more users and keep them. IDX Webservices will keep your site content fresh, updating your site whenever you want.

TECKpert offers customized IDX Solutions for Real Estate Broker’s and Agents. Contact us to find out more.