Hopefully, you saw our recent press release announcing Vertical IQ’s acquisition of award-winning localized data intelligence firm Local Market Monitor. Local Market Monitor provides timely assessments and forecasts of more than 300 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), 2,000 counties, and 20,000 ZIP codes across the U.S., so it’s truly a boon for Vertical IQ that the acquisition has now come to fruition.
There are a lot of reasons I’m excited about bringing Local Market Monitor – both their product and their team – on board. At a high level, this strategic acquisition will:
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- Provide Vertical IQ customers with deeper, more granular data at the local level
- Better showcase the local conditions that drive success for a particular industry
- Improve forecasting of wages, real estate prices, construction, and demand for various industries – locally and nationally
- Provide a new product that enables banks and others to analyze real estate prices with access to award-winning Equilibrium Home Prices
But the reasons behind this strategic decision run much deeper than just the points above…
Next-level local economic expertise
First and foremost, the folks at Local Market Monitor are the experts’ experts. Their founder and president, Ingo Winzer, has won four Pulsenomics Crystal Ball Awards, which honors the most accurate and reliable forecasters for residential real estate prices. Ingo also is a recognized expert on real estate markets and economies, and he is often quoted in national publications like Forbes, Fortune, Wall Street Journal, Think Realty, and Housing Wire. With this acquisition, Ingo will support Vertical IQ’s research and product teams to expand local economic data relevant to industries.
Carolyn Beggs, the company’s COO, has been integral to Local Market Monitor’s success. She’s the person behind the curtain successfully keeping all the balls in the air with responsibility for the company’s sales, customer support, marketing, and business operations. Carolyn will join the Vertical IQ team to lead ongoing sales of the Local Market Monitor product and support other operations.
On a personal note, I was fortunate enough to work with both Ingo and Carolyn in a previous role, and I can tell you that they are both exemplary in their expertise and their work ethic – and they’re just all-around great people. They will be tremendous assets to have on the Vertical IQ team.
Responding to your feedback to enhance Vertical IQ
We are always eager to get feedback from Vertical IQ users on ways we can make our Industry Intelligence even more useful. One thing we’ve heard you say is that you want more information at the local level.
While we’ve been using portions of Local Market Monitor’s exceptional economic data for many years, now we can provide even more of that deep-dive, granular local data you’ve asked for. We’ll be able to better highlight the local economic conditions that drive success for a particular industry at the MSA level and even at the county level – focusing on key drivers like wages, housing prices, construction, employment, and more.
That’s useful data for bankers and real estate professionals as they make business decisions, and it is also valuable information to be able to share with a business owner – perhaps someone looking to expand their business into a new area.
…but still a standalone product, as well
If you or your organization is a current Local Market Monitor user, fear not! Portions of Local Market Monitor’s content will be used to further enhance the Vertical IQ product, but Local Market Monitor also will remain a standalone product offering, continuing to provide you with the local economic and real estate data you rely on.
If your organization does not currently use Local Market Monitor, this could be the ideal time to add it to your arsenal. It can be bought as a standalone enterprise solution for banks, real estate investment or brokerage firms, or as a single market solution. It can even be purchased with a single user license.
Whether you are a Chief Credit Officer (CCO), risk manager, credit analyst, head of mortgage banking, or a residential real estate investor or broker, Local Market Monitor will provide your team with the guidance they need to make better lending or investing decisions. You can learn more about their Market Reports here or you can contact us to get a demo!
“I love the Equilibrium Home Price forecast provided by Local Market Monitor,” said one of their bank lending customers. “It provides an indication if a market is overvalued or not, and we include it in our monthly credit review we use to make lending decisions. It helps the team understand where home prices are going.”
An investment in our future
We are both excited and honored to be bringing Local Market Monitor into the Vertical IQ family. This strategic purchase is yet another way we are investing in Vertical IQ to ensure it is the best Industry Intelligence product on the market!
>> If you have questions about Local Market Monitor, would like a demo, or are interested in adding it to your team’s toolkit, please contact us today.
Image credit: Investment Executive