Today, we're launching a series of articles that explores the spectrum of technology products available to real estate professionals. Each article will cover what a specific category of tech solutions does, what questions to ask before purchasing, and available. We're kicking things off with a look at CMAs.

What is a CMA?

CMA stands for Competitive Market Analysis. Traditionally, these reports for seller clients provide recent comparable sales and allow agents to craft their own recommendation for listing price. However, as a product category, it is quickly expanding to include a variety of other reports for both buyers and sellers, often automated to require minimal input from the agent.

To help you learn more about CMAs and how to use them, we recommend reading the following articles. They're a good place to get started:

• Prospecting with a CMA
• Choosing Comps for Your CMA
• Choosing a Valuation Tool: CMA vs. AVM
• Video: iPad Listing Presentations

Questions to Ask

If you're in the market for a CMA solution, there are questions you can ask to evaluate which option is right for you.

• Does this product have data access in your market? If not, can you download comps from the MLS and easily upload them to the CMA tool?
• How much flexibility/functionality is built-in for branding?
• Is there a WYSIWYG editor that will allow you to add text about your services as a listing agent?
• Can you embed images, photos, videos, or other media to make the CMA more attractive when viewed in a Web browser? Which leads us to our next question. . .
• Can the CMA be viewed in a Web browser? If so, is it mobile-friendly? Ask the vendor whether it just appears as a .pdf on mobile or whether it is actually interactive.
• Can you plug-in an AVM to the CMA product? If you're unfamiliar with the term, AVM stands for Automated Valuation Model. To understand AVMs and CMAs better, you may want to read this article
• Can you access public records data and pull it into the CMA?

Your Options

The questions above are from our 2014 Technology Guide. The guide also highlights specific CMA solutions available to you, including:

• Cloud CMA: With this mobile-friendly, Web-based tool, real estate professionals can create attractive reports for buyers and sellers including – CMA, Buyer Tour, Property Report, and Flyers.

For more information on the option above, download the full guide. For a full list of available CMAs, visit our Product Directory.