In the dynamic world of real estate, properties come and go with the 'Sold' sign being the ultimate goal. However, for real estate agents, a sold property presents a unique SEO conundrum—what to do with the webpage of a property that’s no longer on the market?
The Art of Handling Sold Property Pages
A sold property page, once high-ranking, can be an SEO asset or a liability, depending on how it’s managed post-sale. Deleting the page might seem like the straightforward solution, but is it the best one?
Strategies for Maintaining SEO Value
Let's explore some expert tactics that can preserve the SEO juice and keep the value of that digital real estate:
301 Redirects: Intelligent redirection can guide potential clients to similar properties or back to the homepage, maintaining the link equity that the sold property page has built.
Page Repurposing: For smaller agency sites, repurposing the page for another relevant property keeps the page alive and relevant, leveraging its established SEO standing for new listings.
Temporary "Sold" Notification: Larger platforms like Zillow may opt to mark a property as sold, keeping the page live for a set period before deletion to avoid wasting crawl budget.
Kasra Dash points out the nuance of this approach...
"There are multiple ways you can go about doing this and it depends on the size of the website."
A bespoke strategy is often required, tailored to the website's scale and the SEO goals of the agency.
Your SEO Blueprint for Real Estate Success
Assess the Page's Value: Determine if the sold property page has enough SEO value to warrant a 301 redirect or repurposing.
Choose the Right Redirect: If opting for a redirect, ensure it's to a relevant page to provide a seamless user experience.
Monitor the Crawl Budget: Keep an eye on how search engines are spending their resources on your site. Pages that no longer serve your business should not consume a disproportionate share.
Update Content Strategically: If you're marking a property as sold, update the content to keep it timely and informative until the page is scheduled for removal.
Understanding the intricate puzzle of SEO for sold properties ensures that real estate websites remain efficient and authoritative. Every page has the potential to be an asset, and it's up to savvy agents and SEO specialists to harness that potential effectively.
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