Nathan Glaisner is the co-founder and director of sales at CartoFront

Nathan Glaisner is the co-founder and director of sales at CartoFront, an online map search platform that helps real estate professionals identify opportunities in Chicago at the parcel level using predictive mapping and complex search filters. We caught up with him to ask him a few questions about the platform.

Chicago Agent (CA): Where does CartoFront get its data from?

Nathan Glaisner (NG): Our data is a combination of public data that we clean up and reformat, private data that we purchase, and data that we create internally by interpreting proposed legislation, local ordinances and development plans. All in all, we have about 15 different sources for our data, all distilled in one place.

CA: How often is CartoFront’s data updated?

NG: Some data is updated as often as weekly, but it really depends on the data itself. Zoning, for example, only needs to be updated when there is a formal zoning change. We know when local officials are meeting to discuss those types of changes, and we update after they occur. Other data points, such as probate, divorce, bankruptcy and foreclosure, are weekly or monthly, depending on the case filings for that time period.

CA: Are you currently working with any real estate professionals to help develop the product?

NG: Yes! We regularly meet with area brokers to “beta test” new features, and they provide insight on how the product works for them. Most of our learning tools and user videos are a direct result of requests for information requested by those users. We work hard to be extremely responsive to requests from our users.

CA: How much does it cost for agents to use?

NG: Our base price is $199/month, but if you are a member of CAR it is only $129/month.

CA: How can agents access CartoFront’s data?

NG: Once an agent subscribes, they have full access to all of our data and mapping functionality. We do not limit data viewing or hide the good stuff behind an added paywall – it’s one price for the whole CartoFront universe.

CA: Are there any new features that will be added to CartoFront in the near future? Any useful partnerships or integrations?

NG: We recently released a new set of features that allows users to collaborate in teams using shared portfolios and saved search parameters. That is especially useful for agents working as a part of a team or looking to share strategies and resources. Up next, we will be launching a slew of new reporting features – including the ability to share saved maps – so that our users can create custom materials for their clients. Finally, we just secured a new contract that will increase our phone data coverage from about 40 percent up to 70 percent; look for that to take affect very soon.