2012 is a big year for us – it’s our 10th anniversary as a company. We’ve gone through a lot over the years, and this milestone is an important one.

We rolled out our first Commercial Information Exchange (CIE) in 2002, shortly after launching a data-sharing platform for members of the CCIM Institute. At the time, the “Catylist Tech Headquarters” was a spare closet in the REALTOR® building in Chicago. Our team doubled in size that first year, and by the start of 2003 we’d launched 10 CIEs in markets around the country. We now host over 30 CIEs and Commercial MLS platforms, more than any other provider.

We had a lot to learn in those early days, and we’ll always be grateful to the first two pioneering groups that stuck with us through those growing pains, helping us build the service into what it is today:

CIEs are more important than ever

We started the company with a belief in a few simple ideas, and looking back it’s nice to see that we’re still on the same path:

• Sharing is Good – Sharing information about commercial property listings ultimately benefits everyone. Owners, tenants, investors, brokers on both sides of the deal – everyone.
• Commercial ≠ Residential – The Residential MLS is no place for commercial property listings. CRE deserves technology dedicated to the complexities of industrial properties, office spaces, shopping centers, etc.
• Data is King – We help communities pool and share their intellectual property. That collection of information is extremely valuable – they should never give up ownership.
• Grassroots > Top Down – Most Commercial Real Estate is done locally and every market is different. It’s better to build a national network of established local communities than to ignore these differences and develop a one-size-fits-all national platform.

As big national services like LoopNet and CoStar consolidate and continue to raise their fees, the CIE movement is more important than ever. All local CRE communities should have access to quality tools and information at an affordable price. For commercial real estate pros, success should be about the level of service you provide, not about how much money you have to spend.

Thank You

While we’d like to attribute this milestone to our keen vision, business savvy, or true grit, we know that we’re still around because of you, our clients. Thanks again for a decade’s worth of enthusiastic support and thoughtful feedback. Keep it coming.

Here’s to a successful 2012, for all of us in the industry!

We’re very happy to announce the newest member of our CIE family – the Northern California Commercial Association of REALTORS®. The new California Commercial Property Information Exchange (CACPIX) is now live: http://cacpix.com

“Our CIE committee’s job was to review the major national CIE options and provide recommendations to the Board of Directors. It was clear the Catylist service provided the best user friendly, flexible, most robust and cost efficient exchange for our members and non-members. I was introduced to Catylist while working in Michigan. Our commercial team relied on the Michigan CIE more than any other exchange due to the amount and reliability of data provided by CBOR/CPIX. I am pleased that NCCAR’s Board of Directors took the lead and partnered with Catylist to bring a valuable and necessary statewide CIE to California”

Steven McMurtrie, CIE Committee Chairman
Northern California Commercial Assoc. of REALTORS®

Learn more about how a Commercial Information Exchange can benefit your local community.

Over the past few months, Catylist has worked with the California Desert Association of REALTORS® (who operates the Desert Area Commercial Information Exchange, or DACIE) to identify and reach out to economic development groups in their area. Through close collaboration, we’ve helped to establish a network of economic development partners that now share information with the association, each displaying sale and lease availabilities on their website.

• Coachella Valley Economic Partnership
• Coachella Valley Enterprise Zone
• City of Coachella
• City of Rancho Mirage
• City of Indio
• City of Palm Springs
• Desert Hot Springs
• And talks are underway with several other groups!

These partnerships ensure that businesses doing site selection in the area have access to the most current and accurate information available. It also helps the association’s REALTOR® members to get their property listings in front of a broader audience.

Learn More about Catylist solutions for Economic Developers

Read on for a recent press release on the topic…

More California Economic Development Groups Feature Desert Area CIE Property Listings

 
The Desert Area Commercial Information Exchange (DACIE) recently added the City of Rancho Mirage and Coachella Valley Economic Partnership, to their list of cities and economic development groups using the DACIE listing data and search engine as their website site selection tool. DACIE, operated by the California Desert Association of REALTORS and powered by Catylist, is an online commercial real estate property listing service featuring over a thousand active commercial listings located throughout the Desert Cities. The technology interface, EDCLink, which updates data in real-time was also developed by Catylist.

Searchable properties on the Coachella Valley site include all DACIE listings and properties while those listed on the City of Rancho Mirage site are specific to Rancho Mirage only. Additionally, website visitors on both sites can also search for local commercial real estate professionals to assist in their relocation efforts.
 
DACIE is the premier source for commercial real estate information in the Desert Cities including Palm Desert, Indio, Palm Springs, Cathedral City and La Quinta. All commercial real estate data in DACIE is entered and maintained by commercial real estate brokers who must regularly verify and update information.  This verification process ensures validity while the brokers maintain total control of their data.  
 
Other California groups that have integrated the DACIE database and search engine via EDCLink include the City of Coachella, and Coachella Valley Enterprise Zone.

FGCAR – Florida Gulf Coast Association of REALTORS®

Launched in 2002 (almost 10 years ago), FGCAR was our first CIE client. Over the years we’ve worked with them to improve and customize the service (integration with membership and public records databases, etc.) and it’s grown into a successful information exchange serving professionals in the Tampa, Florida region. We’re very happy to continue our oldest partnership, and are looking forward to great things ahead. Visit FGCAR

LACDB – Louisiana Commercial Database

Launched in 2004, LACDB is our largest CIE client. It’s the most comprehensive repository of commercial real estate data in the state of Louisiana, trafficked by nearly 9,000 professionals each month. It’s been a pleasure working with LACDB over the years to build the value of the service. Most recently, we collaborated to add a number of custom map layers, including parcel boundaries, enterprise zones, and zoning information. Visit LACDB

These are just two of the 30 markets around the country that use our CIE software to share information, breaking their dependence on high-priced national services. For more information about how a Catylist CIE can benefit your market, get in touch!

We’ve been chosen to create a new Commercial MLS for the Pensacola Association of REALTORS®!

The new site is live at: GulfCoastCMLS.com and we’ll be working closely with Wendy and the great staff at PAR to aggregate data and grow this into a valuable tool for marketing and researching commercial property in the greater Pensacola area!

Learn more about how a Commercial Information Exchange can benefit your local community.

Our focus over the past few months has been on taking that new data and integrating it within our CIEs in a way that makes the information easy to understand. These latest changes are a big step toward our goal of making our locally-controlled databases a one-stop-shop for commercial real estate information in each market.

Improvements to Navigation & Search

We’ve made it much easier to get around your CIE. All major functions are now instantly accessible thanks to the new drop-down menu bar at the top of the screen. This should drastically reduce the number of clicks it takes to get at the information you need.

We’ve also overhauled the search pages to make it easier for you to see all the different kinds of information that can be searched. You’ll notice the new menu on the left-hand side that will allow you to quickly toggle between different searches. The new search pages are a lot less cluttered, and should be easier on the eyes. We’ve made searching by keyword easier to find and more effective. The keyword fields will also auto-populate with popular terms to save time and avoid typos. Finally, when searching for listings or comparables, you will now see a “Show on Map” option allowing you to go directly to the “Map View” when searching.

Better Submarket Support Submarkets are locally-understood designations for areas that don’t always align nicely with government boundaries, ie. “Downtown” or “South City Industrial District”. If your CIE has submarket boundaries defined, you can now choose to filter your search to particular submarkets by visually selecting those areas on a map. Look for the “Select Submarket” link under the location box when searching for listings, comps, or properties. If your CIE doesn’t yet have submarkets defined, let us know and we’ll work with you and your CIE administrator to set them up.

Improved Property History / Address Look-up

Because our CIEs are Property-Centric, all of the information we collect gets tied back to individual parcels. The “Property History” page makes it easy to see everything the CIE knows about a property at a particular address. We’ve just overhauled this page to be more comprehensive, including many new types of information: Active Listings for sale or lease Spaces/Parcels at that address NEW Transaction History, including sale and lease activity Property History Timeline including new listings, price changes, and expirations NEW Property/Building Details including hundreds of possible variables like size, zoning, tax ID, characteristics, etc. NEW Photos collected for that address Owner History including contact information when available NEW Tenant History including contact information when available NEW Tax History including taxes paid and assessed values when available NEW Loan History when available NEW Links to local market statistics and demographics, etc. Maps, aerial and street views

This gives your CIE the ability to function as a powerful research database, giving you quick access to data that might’ve taken hours to compile separately. To try it out, select the “Property Histories” option under the “Search” menu, and enter an address.

If your CIE doesn’t currently provide tax records or owner and tenant information, get in touch with your CIE administrator and let them know you want it. The data is available should your CIE choose to integrate it.

Confidential Prices for Sale Transactions

Many agents aren’t comfortable sharing details about their transactions, especially the sale price. We’ve added a new option for users reporting sales: “Keep Price Confidential”. This allows the CIE to use the price to generate more accurate market statistics, but allows the agent to keep the price private. No one else will be able to see the entered price.

QR Codes for Reports

QR codes are a new form of barcode that can be scanned by smartphones. All printable reports generated from your CIE can now include QR codes for each property. Once a report is printed, clients can simply scan the code and be automatically taken to the online listing presentation to view the full details. You can also choose to exclude the QR codes from their reports by selecting that option when customizing their report. Learn more about QR codes and Commercial Real Estate.

Thanks!

As always, thanks for your excellent feedback and suggestions! Please don’t hesitate to contact us with your ideas to improve the service. We’ll be rolling out more great tools and enhancements later this year.

We’re excited to welcome our newest CIE client! NICAR’s new CIE will finally give commercial real estate professionals in Northern Illinois a place to share information, including property listings for sale and lease, and access to a historical database of over 80,000 transactions.

Learn more about how a Commercial Information Exchange can benefit your local community, or read on for the full press release:

Northern Illinois Commercial Association of REALTORS® to Launch Catylist Online Listing Service Designed for Commercial Real Estate Professionals

WHEATON, IL (July 7, 2011) – Years of comprehensive review and evaluation of Commercial Information Exchange (CIE) systems has resulted in a contract between the Northern Illinois Commercial Association of REALTORS® (NICAR) and Catylist to bring the nation’s leading CIE offering to the area for commercial real estate professionals. Catylist, whose CIE service is in use throughout the country, is currently developing a locally-branded website and marketing platform for the 200+ members of NICAR.

The new service is scheduled to launch August 1, 2011. The site will connect commercial professionals, owners, tenants and investors looking to buy, sell, and lease commercial properties throughout Northern Illinois and beyond. The public search will also allow the business community to locate professionals by specialty, property type, and market area served.

According to 2011 NICAR President Elect, Dan Cawley, SIOR, “After years of careful investigation and review, the board has determined Catylist will be the host of our long awaited and highly anticipated Information Exchange service. NICAR’s Board is committed to providing the best tools and services available to its members and this decision is a giant step for the Association, affiliates and the consumer of our services. The ability for our members to control and own the information will produce the most accurate resource of its kind available in the marketplace thereby raising each participating member’s ability to serve!”

The online database will operate using Catylist’s exclusive Scenario Search technology, allowing users to refine their search by adding/removing a multitude of real-time filters. The instantaneous search results provide a more efficient means of quickly identifying properties that match a user’s search criteria.

Advanced mapping and aerial tools incorporate varying perspectives from Google Maps, Google Street View, and Microsoft Virtual Earth Bird’s Eye. GIS mapping layers will allow users to overlay population density, household income, and education level on all property searches. Members will also have access to comprehensive demographic reports and local market statistics.

NICAR members will receive a full-featured marketing system with the ability to simultaneously market properties on over 40 websites, promote their expertise, create high-end marketing presentations, communicate with local and national commercial professionals, and access a variety of integrated marketing tools on the member-only side of the website.

About NICAR

The Northern Illinois Commercial Association of REALTORS® (NICAR) is a commercial trade association covering 13 counties in northern Illinois, including Cook, DuPage, Kane, Ogle, DeKalb, Kendall, Lake, McHenry, Kankakee, Grundy, Will, Boone, and Winnebago. NICAR as an organization is the only “voice” that advances the interests of commercial practitioners. NICAR is governed by a committed volunteer board of directors. Members include the most influential and dedicated professionals in commercial real estate, government, mortgage banking, title insurance, building contractors, and other related disciplines.

We’re very happy to announce a new partnership with our friends at Rofo, a national search engine for available space. All Catylist CIE members are now able to push their property listings to Rofo.

Additionally, thanks to Rofo’s Real Estate Pro app, those listings can also be displayed on your LinkedIn profile. Setting up the app is free and takes just seconds, then you’ll be able to display your available listings and deals done on the world’s largest business-focused social network. LinkedIn has over 100 million members. If you don’t have a profile yet, it’s time to take a look.

To learn more, here’s a short video demonstration:

Get Started!

1. Log in to your CIE and make sure you’re opted in the the Rofo feed by clicking to the “Promote” section for one of your listings. Take note of the username and password displayed.
2. Log in to your existing LinkedIn account (or create one)
3. Setup the Real Estate Pro app (one click)
4. Under “Manage” click “Link Rofo Account”
5. Select “Yes, I already have a Rofo account”, then enter the username and password from step #1
6. That’s it. Now your property listings are displayed on your LinkedIn profile!

Maximum Exposure

Your next deal can come from anywhere. Catylist Commercial Information Exchanges allow members to syndicate their listings to a growing number of sites with no additional data entry. Investors and tenants are searching for space on many sites – we help our members get their listings on as many of them as possible. Learn More about Catylist CIEs

About Rofo

Rofo stands for Right of First Offer. It’s your right to find the best offers and get a complete view of your local commercial real estate market. Whether your searching for office, retail or warehouse space to rent or buy, finding the next location for your business is an important decision and it goes beyond viewing active listings. Rofo provides the unique tools and information to make your search smarter and more complete.

We’re happy to announce our newest CIE client — we’re building a new commercial property database to serve the members of the Coeur d’Alene Traders Club. The CIE will be THE source for commercial real estate information in Northern Idaho & Eastern Washington, including property listings for sale and lease, and transaction history.

The site is live at: nwcre.org.

Learn more about how a Commercial Information Exchange can benefit your local community.

We’re now in Washington, DC for the 2011 REALTOR® Midyear Meetings & Expo, May 11th through the 13th.

There are great things happening at Catylist, whether you’re an association looking to grow your commercial membership or a broker looking for marketing tools and services to close more deals.

Come find out why we’re the #1 provider of CIE solutions to associations around the country!