Happy Halloween from Quizzle!

BOO brave Quizzlers…

WARNING!… Read on only if you think you can handle the SCARY-buzz that is surrounding Quizzle.

The numbers are FRIGHTENING. Yesterday ~500 new people created Quizzle accounts, on Wednesday ~1,000 new Quizzle accounts, and on Tuesday ~2,000 new accounts were created!

Today, on this TERRIFYING day of ghosts, ghouls and goblins, Quizzle will amass a BONE-CHILLING total of 90,000 Quizzlers (in less than nine months) with an ALARMING advertising budget of (WATCH OUT, you might have to cover your eyes) … ZERO DOLLARS! So thank you to all of you blog readers for spreading the word and being a part of this HORRIFYINGLY-great buzz!

You have also contributed to another SPOOKY-big number.  Exactly 316 of you have chosen to improve your mortgage with Quicken Loans (our mortgage partner) after Quizzle showed you a better solution!

So go forth FEARLESS Quizzlers.  Have a WICKED-fun Halloween tonight.  And please don’t be AFRAID to Quizzle today!

Happy Trick-or-Treating and Quizzling!

In the craziness of the month of August at Quicken Loans, we forgot to wish Quizzle a happy birthday!  At the 6-month mark, the Quizzle community had swiftly grown to  56,132  strong!

In the last few weeks we’ve expanded to a whopping 70,000 living in Quizzle Land – getting Quizzle scores, credit reports, credit scores, home values, new mortgages from Quicken Loans, retirement and college saving advice.  Also, congratulations, many of you early Quizzle adopters are now eligible for a new free credit report and free credit score inside Quizzle!

Oh, and I want to take a quick minute to thank you for all the great feedback you’re sending in.  Daily we receive dozens of really amazing ideas for improving Quizzle – all generated by YOU.  We are having some great conversations with many you and (based on the most popular ideas) we’ll make and announcement in the next week or two about some exciting new additions that are coming soon to your friendly neighborhood Quizzle!

So Happy Belated Birthday to Quizzle.  We can’t wait to see what you grow up to be.  And Quizzlers, we’d tell you to have a piece of cake on us, but Bill Gates, Jerry Seinfeld and Microsoft have not yet made “computers moist and chewy like cake…” yet, so we’ll just say happy Quizzling!

Yesterday, Clark Howard, host of the nationally syndicated Clark Howard financial advice radio show, ran a story with Action 2 News Atlanta about free credit reports calling Quizzle the “real deal.” Within minutes of the story airing, Quizzle was flooded with thousands of people creating personal Quizzle accounts and learning about important things like their credit scores, home values, mortgages, budgets and more.

Check it out: Clark Howard Shows You How To Get Your Free Credit Score

We built Quizzle with the belief that people do things based on “word of mouth.” We believe that “if you build something” useful… and really cool, people will talk about it and – “they will come!” Word-of-mouth marketing works because of TRUST and people really TRUST Clark Howard. Last night, a Quizzle Client told us that, “If Clark Howard says Quizzle is great, then it’s great!”

After experiencing the massive traffic blitz from Clark Howard’s loyal fan base, it’s obvious that he is the “real deal.” When Clark talks, people listen… and now, people Quizzle!

We’d like you to meet Cyberhomes – our newest friend and partner in Quizzle-land! For those of you who don’t KNOW Cyberhomes, they will be living in Quizzle and providing YOU with up-to-date home values, home details and homes that selling in your neighborhood!

A couple of the super fun new features CyberHomes offers all Quizzle clients –

1. No waiting! Before Cyberhomes lived in Quizzle-land, our home value report was updated every few months. Now, every time you log-in to Quizzle, your home value will be updated to the current day’s info!
2. More KNOWING! Be the neighborhood know-it-all as you can now watch all the homes in your neighborhood sell inside Quizzle! See exactly what the homes down the street from you are selling for in comparison to your home.
3. Higher accuracy! If something doesn’t seem right about your home’s value or details (bedrooms, baths, square-footage, etc), you can use our partnership with CyberHomes to correct details and refine your home’s value inside Quizzle!

See, Quizzle listens! And we’ve heard your feedback over the past couple months. We realize how important your home’s value is to you and that’s why we chose to mash-up with Cyberhomes, the leading site on the web for current home values and accuracy! So, enjoy everything that Cyberhomes has to offer inside your personalized Quizzle account. Go take a look at how your new home’s value affecting your Quizzle score and… your life!!

Thanks Quizzle Q-munity for the great feedback and keep it coming! Your ideas and suggestions are being implemented into the Quizzle everyday to create the best experience for YOU!

What’s next, you ask? We’ve gotten a lot of feedback in Quizzle about helping you KNOW what it takes to live in a “Green” home and live a “Green” life. So, we are working with the Internet environmental experts to create a new Quizzle app for you that will answer the question, “How green are you?” Yep, of course you’ll even get a green grade! Stay tuned; it’s coming soon. And anytime you’ve got more ideas to make Quizzle better, just e-mail us – blog@quizzle.com.

Happy Quizzling!

By: Eli Boyer

Eli Boyer is the Marketing Coordinator and Dedicated Blogger for Quizzle’s sister company, In-House Realty.  In-House Realty specializes in matching home buyers and sellers with trusted real estate agents in all 50 states, for free!

Starting Your Home Search on the Web

As a “professional” who spends most of my workday in front of a LCD monitor on my desk, it made sense to utilize my web-savvy by initiating my own home search with the help of the World Wide Web.  After all, it’s the most convenient, non-committal, and information-rich means by which to begin what will likely be the biggest purchase of my young life.

Don’t get me wrong, if I do eventually move forward with a purchase, I plan on working with a trusted real estate agent.  However, there are a ton of websites that can at least help a guy narrow down his search.  In-House Realty’s website aside, here are a few good options that I’ve come across, with a brief review on each.

1. Craigslist.org

Everyone’s favorite “find anything here” website is hands-down my favorite site for browsing real estate listings.  It’s barebones, incredibly simple, and does without all the clutter of most real estate sites.  There are no articles, no advertisements, and generally no fluff.  It’s totally guilt-free browsing, and I’m all about it.

2. Trulia

A true real estate search engine, Trulia presents listings, trends and other info at the local level in a bright and user-friendly format.  They offer a hybrid list/map view when you narrow down your preferences and they even enable you to hone your search by neighborhood!  Their newest feature, however, is their best.  Trulia has teamed up with Google and their “Street View” map feature to let you virtually walk through the town of your preference.

3. Hotpads.com

A dark horse candidate in the real estate website sweepstakes, hotpads.com makes up for it’s anonymity with one of the smoothest operating map features on the web.  Hotpads.com’s focus is condo listings and apartment rentals in urban areas, and they get it right.  They even feature a foreclosure heat map to assist users looking for an investment property or overall great deal.

Honorable Mentions

Realtor.com – The most comprehensive search on the web, but the current format is cluttered.

Zillow.com – It’s great for home values, but the search feature is a little bit slow and confusing.

Roost.com – Simple, clear and user friendly, but it isn’t tapped into enough markets.