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Real estate listings add 'walk scores' for neighborhood desirability - TwinCities.com <br />TwInC itiese.com <br />Real estate listings add <br />' walk scores'for <br />neighborhood <br />desirability <br />By Christopher Snowbeck <br />csnowbeck@pioneerpress.com <br />Updated: 06/17/2010 10:02:19 PM CDT <br />Big yard? Check. <br />Good school district? Check. <br />Walkability? <br />Edina Realty thinks homebuyers want to know how <br />easily they can walk to a grocery store, park or <br />restaurant from a listed house, so it has added a <br />'Walk Score' to all online listings. <br />The feature rates homes on a scale of 0 to 100 <br />based on whether their neighborhoods are friendly <br />to walkers. A score of 0 to 25 means residents need <br />to drive everywhere, the real estate company says, <br />whereas a score of 90 to 100 is a walker's dream. <br />In addition to the numerical score, the Walk Score <br />section of listings on the company website also <br />includes the names of and distances to nearby <br />grocery stores, shops and other amenities. <br />Walk Score is a product of Front Seat, a civic <br />software company in Seattle, and Edina Realty can <br />display the scores by way of licensing agreements. <br />Financial terms were not disclosed. <br />Advertisement <br />"Walk Score is a great new feature for home buyers <br />who value the health and environmental benefits of <br />living in a walkable neighborhood," Bob Peltier, <br />president of Edina Realty, said in a statement. <br />A particular home's score depends on data drawn <br />from a few different sources. <br />Walk Score uses Google Maps to find stores, <br />restaurants, bars, parks and other amenities within <br />walking distance of an address. The program also <br />uses data from the U.S. Census Bureau and real <br />estate website Zillow.com to calculate population <br />density and distances from the home to <br />neighborhood amenities. <br />While the Edina Realty website includes walkability <br />scores for homes listed for sale, curious <br />homeowners can check their property's score at <br />walkscore.com. <br />How accurate are the readings? A check of the score <br />for the Governor's Residence on Summit Avenue in <br />St. Paul yields mixed results. <br />The mansion gets a "very walkable" rating based on <br />its score of 78 — a view likely shared by those who <br />live in the neighborhood. But the detailed data <br />about nearby amenities are a bit hit-or-miss. <br />Closest hardware store? Restoration Hardware — <br />probably not the first stop in a plumbing <br />emergency. <br />Closest movie theater? A nearby playhouse called <br />SteppingStone Theater. Second -closest library? A <br />nearby library consulting business, which of course <br />isn't a library. <br />Identity Theft Protection <br />ENROLL TODAY AND GET: <br />30 DAY R I S 1 -1-13 E TIR 11_ <br />d r <br />' } 174 <br />0 LifeL Ck <br />#11 n Identity Theft P'rotectior� <br />-.jV We p ...: , °Y iF card will bkn biller -XIC-math afl-V <br />_)G annul _ Il a _ , _ . Lvit wi tte 3-0•djy <br />s F rA ock mernbm Gni. <br />Print Powered By rllFormat!Dynamics" <br />Page 1 of 2 <br />http://www.twincities.com/business/ci_15322102?nclick_check=1 6/18/2010 <br />