nrtNRT is going to launch two websites by the end of 2014 – one that will include automated valuations like Zillow Zestimates & IDX, and the other which will put all their local operating company websites under one URL.

Sounds like exactly what the portals have been doing for years.

Why would a consumer go to either of these websites instead of Zillow, Trulia, or Realtor.com? What does NRT plan to offer that is unique? How are they going to gain traffic? Buy it from Google? Surely, they don’t believe simply launching two new websites will give them a massive boost in leads. Even if the websites convert at a crazy high percentage, they are still worthless without traffic. And traffic requires a lot of time, or a lot of money.

The portals shifted to focus on mobile around 2010. That was 4 years ago, and NRT is just now launching a new website initiative? What am I missing?