Currently one of the worst overposter/spammers in the Austin apts for rent category – upwards of 1000 postings per day using a dozen different contact email addresses and various formats to attempt to evade detection. Gmail addresses, hotmail addresses, comcast addresses, etc.

The larger issue for the real estate profession is that regular consumers easily equate the shady operators with the good ones. Figuring out a good solution to this problem will not be easy, I fear.

Kimberly:
Glad you like the site! The listing you link to is no longer on craigslist. But I would gather that it’s a simple HTML template of some sort that is perhaps customized for the agent. There seems to be a lot of interest in this area (if my analytics on this specific post are any indication) so maybe Union Street will offer a simple solution sometime.

For now, I would bet that what you have seen is just some nice, simple and creative use of HTML that fits within the Craigslist guidelines.

If you want to see a home, ask an agent you are comfortable with to show it to you. Choose someone you can work with because if you buy the home they showed you through another agent, they can successfully take all agents in the deal to mediation to get paid. They have a good cause for procurement so it’s important to choose someone you like to show you any home.

That said, I am actually here because I use Postlets but some agents are using fantastic cascading HTML Craigslist flyers and they won’t specify how it’s done. Here’s one:

http://sandiego.craigslist.org/csd/reb/867237816.html

Does anyone know how she does this? She says her marketing person does it and won’t reveal anymore than that.

I love seeing the bright colors and large photos. As long as it’s the listing agent’s posting I am fine with HTML.

Personally, I like to see nicely formatted ads and appreciate clear, larger photos. I used Vflyer to sell my car and got great response from Craigslist and never got flagged.

The specific type of ad that bothers me in Craigslist real-estate section is an ad posted by a “buyer’s agent” that shows a specific house and generally has very limited information about the house. The house is NOT their listing, but is being used to bait people to call them. Yes, they can show that house to you, as a buyer’s agent, but that fact that they’re attaching their name to the property in a “for sale” ad seems to be a misappropriation of the listing agent’s or the MLS system’s copyrighted material (e.g. the photo or listing text).

I think your idea is probably very sound anyway. Just that it tackles a different problem. Also, keep in mind that I’m not Craig. This post is mainly here to provide feedback on the thinking of people who use Craigslist and how they feel about it.

Considering spammers can get your address, phone and anything else they want with a resume attached, you’d think they would focus on killing predators rather than killing style and fashionable looking content. but hey, maybe MY priorities are all bass ackwards and they are perfectly right to target people trying to polish-the-turd of craigslist unstyled text. I just hope I don’t get my IP blocked for goofing off on their serious forums… =)

Craigslist has now started to implement a phone verification for every account thought to be abusing the forum. Now spammers that have grown used too opening new accounts and using other deceptive practices to post ads will have to punch in their phone numbers when they open a new account, then craigslist has an automated system that will call you with a verification code. They have also posted a New Warning page that states if the forum is abused using accounts associated with that phone number then the number will be “Blacklisted” which I am assuming that that means you may no longer post using that number. This should take care of most of the corporate entities out there who abuse craigslist daily.