Trulias new Crime Map
Trulia, Inc. has released an innovative new tool that went live June 02, 2011. Crime Map gives users a birds eye view of what crime is like in the area that they’re thinking about moving to.
Trulia made a genius acquisition in purchasing this new mapping technology from Movity which vastly improves their own offering. Crime Map draw it’s statistics from three separate data sources that report to most the police agencies in the country. SpotCrime, CrimeReports, and EveryBlock power the map results.
View this example of Crime Statistics in Los Angeles. The heat map indicates where the higher concentrations of crime area, giving you several different metrics for determing the safety of the area. Trulia’s CrimeMap is interactive and allows visitors to view crime data, toggle between multiple neighborhoods, and compare between them. The social map aspect allows users to add their own comments and advice via Facebook comments.
Crime Map is still in beta so the reporting coverage is currently pretty limited. Right now Trulia covers 50 major metropolitan areas but has plans to expand it’s coverage area. I can foresee Crime Map becoming an invaluable resource for home buyers and Realtors alike.
Sam DeBord, SeattleHome.com
Posted at 14:43h, 04 JuneIt’s good that they allow users to designate the types of crimes. I imagine, though, that many people will make blanket judgements on an area without delving that far into the details. One area can look bad at first glance, even though it’s just a shopping mall with a high number of shoplifting crimes, and is known by locals as a very safe, low-crime neighborhood. There’s so much potential for misinterpretation of crime statistics, but I suppose more information is always good.
They have data for Spokane, WA and Tacoma, WA, but not Seattle, WA? There must be some issue with the local authorities regarding data usage.
Intown Elite
Posted at 18:25h, 04 JuneYeah, it appears that, since no adjustments have been made for population density, it gives the impression that the most densely-populated areas are the most crime-ridden. One would think per-capita would be a better measure versus per-block. It also does not appear to match the crime maps of our local city police department, which I would trust any day over the likes of aggregators like Trulia & Zillow. GIGO.
Intown Elite
Posted at 18:25h, 04 JuneYeah, it appears that, since no adjustments have been made for population density, it gives the impression that the most densely-populated areas are the most crime-ridden. One would think per-capita would be a better measure versus per-block. It also does not appear to match the crime maps of our local city police department, which I would trust any day over the likes of aggregators like Trulia & Zillow. GIGO.
Intown Elite
Posted at 18:25h, 04 JuneYeah, it appears that, since no adjustments have been made for population density, it gives the impression that the most densely-populated areas are the most crime-ridden. One would think per-capita would be a better measure versus per-block. It also does not appear to match the crime maps of our local city police department, which I would trust any day over the likes of aggregators like Trulia & Zillow. GIGO.
Sullivan County NY Real Estate
Posted at 00:15h, 10 JuneReminds of the game SimCity I used to play. Red areas for crime!. Trulia making another move to cement themselves in this game as a real player.