SMCHousingSearch.org is an easy-to-use service for landlords and renters

Just as the Internet changed the way Americans shop, a new Web-based service promises to transform the way people find housing in San Mateo County.

The free service, www.SMCHousingSearch.org, represents the next generation in Web 2.0 tools. The service provides renters, landlords, housing professionals and anyone with access to a computer, tablet or smart phone access to real-time information about rental housing ranging from subsidized to market rate.

For more information or to begin listing rentals go to www.SMCHousingSearch.org  24/7 or call, toll free, 1.877.428.8844 from Monday – Friday, 6 a.m. – 5 p.m. Pacific Time.

The service is provided by the San Mateo County Housing Authority and the Housing Leadership Council of San Mateo County, with contributions from a variety of community agencies and local business sponsors.

Listings include map links and information about rent, deposits, accessibility features and neighborhood amenities such as parks, schools and shopping. Property providers can add 10 photos and details to highlight listings. There is never any cost to list, and listings can be removed from public view immediately after rental to reduce unwanted calls on unavailable units.

Special features include a listing of quick links to housing resources as well as rent-affordability and moving-cost calculators. Users can also apply filters to home in on housing for seniors or apartments near transit, for example.

A toll-free, bilingual (English and Spanish) call center is available to help landlords and renters with any aspect of www.SMCHousingSearch.org, increasing accessibility to information on the service and helping to ensure that listings stay accurate and current.

As the service ramps up across the county, landlords are particularly encouraged to sign on and take advantage of the free advertising on this easy-to-use and valuable service for the community.

SMCHousingSearch.org Quick Points

The service is completely free to use.

• Renters can search listings for free with no registration required.
•  Property providers can add unlimited rental listings – from subsidized to market rate – with no cost to list, ever.
• This online service is human-managed and includes live support by a toll-free, bilingual (English and Spanish) call center available 6 a.m. – 5 p.m. Pacific Time, Monday – Friday.
• The call center helps tenants search available listings and helps landlords register, add and update listings and even conduct market comparisons, with no time limit on calls so callers can take time to ask any questions they have.
• Call center representatives and a vetted technology system monitor listings to ensure they are accurate and up to date. Real-time listings help renters focus only on available listings, while landlords can receive fewer calls on rented units.
• Landlords only remove listings from public view when they are rented or no longer available (no 30-day listing expiration). Listings are not automatically syndicated or duplicated on other services, so when a landlord removes a listing from public view, fewer unwanted calls on rented units occur.
• Search tools return listing results based on the needs and specific criteria entered by that searcher, helping landlords find more qualified renters faster.
• Countless tools are available for landlords, who can use free SMCHousingSearch.org accounts to keep track of vacancies online.
• “Cloning” tools make it easy and quick to list multiple units at once.
• Basic, recent viewing stats show landlords how often their listings are being found and viewed by potential renters.
• An online-posting generator helps landlords advertise their SMCHousingSearch.org listing(s) via social media and other online classifieds.

• SMCHousingSearch.org can help fulfill affirmative marketing requirements. The website is bilingual and ADA compliant. The bilingual call center incorporates TTY/TDD relay services.

• SMCHousingSearch.org is being actively marketed by housing advocates and agencies countywide, continually increasing traffic to the site and increasing the spotlight on the listings in the system.

• SMCHousingSearch.org focuses not only on housing listings but on housing support. A resource page offers quick links to a variety of area housing resources, and renters will find tools such as rent-affordability and moving-cost calculators.

• SMCHousingSearch.org is part of a greater national network of housing locators powered by the nonprofit Socialserve.com. Other California housing locators in this network include SCCHousingSearch.org in Santa Clara County and Housing.LACounty.gov, PasadenaHousingSearch.com and alaSeniorHousing.org in Los Angeles County.