Sophisticated technology and a smart user interface are changing the way home seekers find houses, apartments, lenders as well as Michigan Real Estate Agents and Brokers. By providing all the tools in one place, the upgraded site gives everyone in the market for a home a one-source destination. mlive.com/realestate even helps with decision making. The first time home buyer might use the site to select an agent or broker. Empty nesters can weigh the options: downsize, buy a condo or rent an apartment.

MLive.com is already a first-stop for many in the real estate market. With the new tools and easier access to everything a Michigan home buyer or renter needs, we expect to see a significant increase in traffic.

The centerpiece of the upgraded Michigan Real Estate site is the Advance Mapping Tool and Driving Tour functionality. Front and center at the new mlive.com/realestate is an intuitive interactive map. When visitors search Michigan homes for sale or houses for rent in Michigan, they enter their choices including location, number of bedrooms, price range and listing type (Advanced Search offers even more options). Select SEARCH and the map becomes a one-of-a-kind annotated guide showing all the selections. When the visitor is finished, the map and driving directions are printed out and the tour begins!

MLive.com is already a first choice destination for Michigan local news, information and classified ads. Home buyers often start with a visit to the site because they expect, and get, comprehensive local Michigan real estate news and listings. According to Mark Hauptschein, President of MLive.com, "MLive.com is already a first-stop for many in the real estate market. With the new tools and easier access to everything a Michigan home buyer or renter needs, we expect to see a significant increase in traffic."

Unlike many other sites, visitors to mlive.com/realestate come from every stage of the real estate decision-making cycle. Some are deciding whether to rent or buy; others are debating the benefits of a new home vs. an older home or comparing one Michigan town to another. For each of them, there is much more than the Driving Tour. A quick scroll down the page reveals many more options. For those who are "just looking" tools and resources are a quick link away. Learn about recent home sales, mortgage rates or foreclosures. Watch videos of local Michigan real estate brokers. Select an agent. The sophisticated buyer of residential or commercial real estate will turn to mlive.com/realestate again and again to check current information and listings.

MLive.com focuses on the local market. Local Michigan real estate news is accessed directly from mlive.com/realestate. Since MLive.com is affiliated with eight daily newspapers, including The Ann Arbor News, The Grand Rapids Press and Kalamazoo Gazette, the news is current and comprehensive. All home seekers have the tools, resources and information they need, all available at one site.

The new mlive.com/realestate is an example of the unique approach that the site uses - combining smart, technological tools and comprehensive local information to deliver the everyday information local residents and visitors need and want. "The Driving Tour is the perfect tool for home buyers. It is an excellent example of the way we continually upgrade our site to satisfy the needs of the local market," states Mark Hauptschein.

MLive.com (www.mlive.com/), based in Ann Arbor, MI, is an affiliate of Advance Internet, Inc. (http://www.advanceinternet.com), a leading creator of highly interactive, online community-based news and information web sites created in alliance with over 37 newspapers owned and operated by Advance Publications Inc., and its subsidiaries, including The Ann Arbor News, The Bay City Times, The Flint Journal, The Grand Rapids Press, The Jackson Citizen Patriot, the Kalamazoo Gazette, the Muskegon Chronicle, The Saginaw News, Advance Newspapers, The Community Newspapers and Michigan Business Review. In addition to MLive.com, Advance Internet, Inc. develops and manages nine other local web sites including al.com; cleveland.com; MassLive.com; NJ.com; NOLA.com; OregonLive.com; PennLive.com; SILive.com; Syracuse.com and two specialty web sites, gulflive.com and MardiGras.com.