SAN FRANCISCO, CA - ClosingCorp has received the prestigious Inman Innovator Award for "Most Innovative New Technology" of 2009 for its Closing.com Web site and its SmartClosing™ Calculator widget. The highly-regarded Inman Innovator Awards recognize companies that use technology and innovation to enhance the real estate transaction and experience for consumers and real estate professionals.
Closing.com is the most comprehensive source for real estate closing and related services on the Web. It enables easy comparison shopping for title insurance rates, settlement and escrow services, home and pest inspections among its current 11 service categories. The SmartClosing™ Calculator widget allows users to estimate their monthly payments, total closing costs and cash needed to close without having to provide personal information (name, e-mail, phone number).
"We are truly honored to be selected for this prestigious award, which speaks to the quality and creativity of our team and the significance of this new product," said Tony Farwell, CEO of ClosingCorp "The SmartClosingÔ technology that powers Closing.com and our widget brings transparency to the final step in the real estate transaction while serving both consumers and real estate professionals. We are proud of this recognition as we move toward our goal of taking the mystery out of closing costs."
Unlike most online closing cost calculators that use national averages and general formulas, the SmartClosingÔ technology uses sophisticated databases and powerful rate engines to generate more accurate closing costs specific to each transaction. The widget needs only the sales price of the transaction, terms of the mortgage and property location to compute the many fees and taxes and determine which services are required by local law or custom.
Four years in development, but only recently released in a beta version, SmartClosingÔ technology makes it easy for homebuyers to see their estimated monthly payments (including mortgage, home insurance and property taxes), their estimated closing costs and the total amount of cash they will need to close their transaction. Sellers can estimate sale proceeds while homeowners can calculate the cost to refinance their home with a few simple clicks.
The SmartClosingÔ Calculator is designed to enhance the customer experience with uniquely practical functionality on real estate listing sites, Multiple Listing Services, broker sites, agent sites, as well as other real estate-related Web sites, by providing critical information about closing costs to users shopping for real estate or mortgages. The calculator can be embedded easily on any Web site and provides the full power of the SmartClosingÔ technology integrated with the look and feel of the hosting site.
Finalists for this year's Most Innovative New Technology Award included Dwellicious, SmarterAgent, Walk Score, and Zillow's iPhone application.
Other winners of this year's Inman Innovator Awards were Frank Borges LLosa, founder of FranklyMLS.com and FranklyRealty.com, (Innovator of the Year), Nest Realty Group (Most Innovative Brokerage), Ubertor (Most Innovative Web Service), The Phoenix Real Estate Guy (Most Innovative Blog) and Breaking News Network by Domus Consulting Group (Most Innovative Media Site).
ClosingCorp, an independent real estate information services company based in La Jolla, CA, owns and operates Closing.com®, the most comprehensive source for real estate closing services on the Web. The site empowers consumers and real estate professionals to shop, compare and evaluate real estate closing services in their area. Visitors to Closing.com can estimate their closing costs, learn more about a real estate provider's products, services and rates and make inquiries online. The SmartClosing™ Calculator widget creates an instant estimate of a buyer's monthly payments, total closing costs and total cash to close and the seller's net proceeds.
Source: Closing.com