Creating Service Areas

Service areas let you create dedicated pages for the neighborhoods you specialize in. Each area gets its own page with a curated selection of listings.

Why Create Service Areas?

Service areas help you:

• Showcase expertise — Demonstrate your knowledge of specific neighborhoods
• Improve SEO — Rank for "homes in [neighborhood]" searches
• Organize listings — Group properties by location for easier browsing
• Tell a story — Add descriptions and images that sell the lifestyle

Creating Your First Service Area

Step 1: Go to Service Areas

1. From your dashboard, click Service Areas in the left navigation
2. Click Add Service Area

Step 2: Name Your Area

Enter the basic information:

Step 3: Set Up Filters

Filters determine which listings appear in this service area.

Filter by City:

• Select the city name (e.g., "Miami Beach")
• Listings in that city will be included

Filter by Subdivision:

• Enter subdivision names that match your MLS data
• Example: "Coconut Grove", "Brickell"

Filter by ZIP Code:

• Enter postal codes to include
• Useful for areas that span multiple subdivisions

Filter by Building Name:

• Enter luxury condo or tower names as they appear in the MLS (e.g., "Porsche Design Tower")
• Use raw names, not slugs — the field autocompletes from your workspace's own indexed listings, so start typing and pick a match
• Import tasks created from this area also pull matching listings by building name

Combining Filters:

• Within a single field (e.g., multiple cities, or multiple building names), values are combined with "OR" logic — a listing matching any one of them qualifies
• Across the geographic fields (City, Subdivision, ZIP, Building Name), values are also combined with "OR" — a listing that matches any value in any of these fields appears in the area. Build an area out of whichever mix of ZIPs, subdivisions and buildings describes it
• Example: ZIP "33131" + Building "Icon Brickell" = every listing in that ZIP, plus every Icon Brickell listing wherever it sits
• Price range and Listing Type still narrow the result. They apply on top of the geography: a listing has to fall inside the area and satisfy the price/type settings
• The import task built from an area uses the same OR-across-fields geography, so an area imports the listings it displays — the area page then narrows that set by price and type

Step 4: Add an Image

Upload a hero image for the area page:

1. Click Upload Image
2. Select a photo that represents the neighborhood
3. Good choices: scenic views, landmarks, lifestyle imagery

Don't have a photo? Turn on Use a listing photo as the featured image. When the area has no hero image, the card and area page use a photo from a current listing in that area instead of the gradient placeholder — it's the photo from the area's highest-priced active listing, so it stays the same until your inventory changes.

• An uploaded hero image always wins. The listing photo is only a fallback.
• If the area matches no listings (or none have photos), the gradient is used.
• Off by default, set per area.
• Office websites use the same feature: the "Areas We Serve" cards on a brokerage's office site pull auto-selected listing photos too (configured per area on the brand template by your platform admin). Areas with no hero image and no matching listing photo render a branded gradient instead of an empty gray card.

Step 5: Write a Description (Optional but Recommended)

Add descriptive text for SEO and visitor engagement:

• Describe what makes the neighborhood special
• Mention notable features (waterfront, schools, dining, etc.)
• Include relevant keywords naturally
• 2-3 paragraphs is ideal

Step 6: Set Display Order

If you have multiple areas, set the display order:

• Lower numbers appear first
• Use increments of 10 (10, 20, 30) so you can insert areas later

Step 7: Save

Click Save to create your service area. It will immediately appear on your site at /areas/[slug].

Managing Existing Service Areas

Editing an Area

1. Go to Service Areas
2. Click on the area you want to edit
3. Make your changes
4. Click Save

Reordering Areas

1. Go to Service Areas
2. Drag areas up or down to reorder
3. The homepage and areas index will reflect the new order

Deleting an Area

1. Go to Service Areas
2. Click the area to open it
3. Click Delete at the bottom
4. Confirm deletion

Note: Deleting an area doesn't delete any listings—it just removes the area page.

Area Page Features

Each service area page includes:

Hero Section

• Large image (your uploaded photo, an auto-selected listing photo, or gradient fallback)
• Area name and tagline

Stats

• Number of active listings
• Starting price ("From $X")

Description

• Your written description (if provided)

Listing Grid

• All listings matching your filters
• Pagination for large result sets

Contact CTA

• Call-to-action to contact you about properties in this area

Tips for Effective Service Areas

Choose Areas Strategically

• Focus on neighborhoods where you have listings
• Consider areas where you want to grow business
• Don't create too many sparse areas

Write Compelling Descriptions

Do:

• Highlight unique characteristics
• Mention amenities and lifestyle
• Include specific location details
• Keep it scannable with short paragraphs

Don't:

• Copy-paste MLS descriptions
• Use excessive keywords unnaturally
• Write walls of text

Use Quality Images

• High resolution (at least 1200px wide)
• Landscape orientation works best
• Showcase the area's appeal (views, architecture, lifestyle)
• Avoid photos with people's faces (privacy)

Keep Filters Accurate

• Test your filters by checking the listing count
• Too few listings? Broaden your filters
• Irrelevant listings appearing? Tighten filters
• Review periodically as new listings come in

Troubleshooting

"No listings found" on area page

• Check your filter settings
• Verify you have active listings that match
• Make sure city/subdivision/building names match MLS data exactly

Wrong listings appearing

• Review your filter combination
• The geographic fields use "OR" logic—a listing only has to match one value in one of them, so a stray ZIP or a too-broad city pulls in listings you didn't mean to include. Remove the value that's over-reaching rather than adding a second field to narrow it
• Use Price Range and Listing Type to narrow an area; those do apply on top of the geography
• Check for typos or naming variants in subdivision or building names

Area not showing on homepage

• Verify area is saved
• Check display order (lower numbers first)
• Ensure "Show Service Areas" is enabled in homepage settings

Listing count seems wrong

• Counts update periodically, not instantly
• Only active listings are counted
• Filters may be more/less restrictive than expected