"Value" is a term we've heard often in our series of case studies on real estate success and Realtors Property Resource® (RPR). In our last article, we learned how Portland-based Regional Multiple Listing Services (RMLS) brings value to their members by integrating RPR data into their proprietary MLS system.

Today, we're moving from the Pacific Northwest to Louisiana to learn how RPR adds value to commercial side of real estate. There, the Louisiana Commercial Database (LACDB) is the Commercial Information Exchange (CIE) that provides listing information on commercial properties for sale, exchange, and lease to the entire state.

In 2013, LACDB integrated RPR and ESRI Tapestry consumer segmentation data to assist its members in site selection and the marketing of commercial real estate.

"The integration with RPR gives us the ability to do really creative searches that we wouldn't be able to do with our database alone," says Ken Damann, Director of Information Technology for LACDB. "We're able to do searches to find properties that aren't in the CIE using RPR's psychographic and demographic fields and then cross-reference that data with our inventory."

Damann cites RPR's "integrated public records and access to tapestry data" as two top reasons that LACDB decided to partner with RPR. But the most compelling reason is how RPR gives Realtors access to data that's only available to NAR members. "It really enhances the value proposition of Realtors versus non-Realtors," he says.

Hands-On With RPR® Commercial

Beth Cristina is one Realtor who finds value in RPR's proprietary data in her work as a commercial associate broker in New Orleans. "The maps and In-Depth Analysis tool are my favorite features," she says.