10 questions for a contractor
- do you have cases specifically in real estate? selling apartments and cottages has its own logic: a long decision cycle, fears, documents, construction progress.
- where do you start? a good answer: with the product, the audience, the ads and the funnel. a bad one: «send us references you like».
- who writes the copy? if the copy is «yours», the site will be built from what you have, not from what sells.
- will there be a structure and prototype before design? the logic and copy should be agreed before colours and pictures.
- how do you analyse competitors? to stand out, you need to know what the neighbours say.
- will the mobile version be a separate, thought-through layout? most ad clicks come from phones.
- can we change prices and availability ourselves? without a simple admin panel every edit goes through a developer.
- will you set up analytics? every request should be saved together with its ad source.
- how do you work with our ads specialist? the ads and the site should say the same thing.
- when don't we need a site? an honest contractor will tell you if your project is better sold without a site for now.
warning signs
- they name a price before learning anything about the project.
- the portfolio is only pretty pictures with no explanation of the task.
- they promise «number one on google» or a specific number of leads before starting.
- there's no stage where the product and the buyer are discussed.
how i work
i work only with real estate and directly with the owner, without managers. i start with a free brief: 1–2 calls where i ask a lot of questions about your business, audience and goals. after it you get a proposal with the price and timeline. then research and competitor analysis, structure, prototype, moodboard, design, development and support after launch. project budgets start at $2,000.
and i say honestly when i'm not the right fit: if you sell 2 houses, you most likely don't need a site. and if you're looking for hands to do everything strictly by the spec without a product breakdown, better choose someone else.
want to ask me these 10 questions? write to me, i'll answer each one.
get a price estimatefaq
who's better for a residential complex website: a studio or a freelancer?
the format matters less than experience in real estate and the approach: does the contractor start with the product and the ads, write the copy, deliver structure before design and set up lead analytics.
can a number of leads from a site be guaranteed?
honestly, no: leads depend on the ads, the product and the price. a contractor can guarantee the process and the quality of the site, but promising an exact number of leads before starting is a warning sign.
how much should a residential complex website cost?
with me from $2,000; typical budgets are $2–5k, $5–10k and $10k+ depending on the catalog, admin panel, interactive features and the number of projects.