ZIPR Ziprealty (MM)

The firm's agents and industry-leading technology give new buyers the edge they need.

Jennifer and Ryan bought their first home in Oakland, Calif.

EMERYVILLE, Calif., May 1, 2013 - ZipRealty, Inc. (http://www.ziprealty.com)(NASDAQ: ZIPR), the leading online residential real estate brokerage and technology provider, assists a variety of consumers interested in buying new homes, including first-time home buyers.

As home prices continue to climb and inventory declines in cities nationwide, consumers face considerable obstacles when buying a home in today's market. Median home prices in 24 metro areas surveyed by ZipRealty in its latest Housing Trends Report increased 15.1% to $250,400 as of March 31, 2013 on a year-over-year basis. Meanwhile, inventory dropped 32% from 485,335 homes to 326,269 homes.

"In all of the markets we examined, inventory declined by about one-third on an annual basis, with the San Francisco Bay Area, Las Vegas and Sacramento metro areas showing the steepest decreases," says ZipRealty CEO and President Lanny Baker. "And, one-fifth of the homes sold throughout our service area last month were on the market for only seven days or fewer, demonstrating the ultra-competitive environment for home buyers, especially first-time home buyers who sometimes face hurdles navigating the unfamiliar home purchase process."

"Now more than ever, it's important to enlist the services of a qualified real estate agent to guide you smoothly through the transaction process and to provide you with a competitive advantage whenever possible," says Mr. Baker. "At the same time, serious home buyers should make sure that the online and mobile resources they're relying upon deliver the most timely, accurate and complete real estate listings, because there's no time to miss a beat in today's market."

Jennifer and Ryan's Story - Oakland, Calif.
Jennifer and Ryan, a couple who just bought their first home in Oakland, Calif., looked at more than a dozen places before eventually purchasing a home through ZipRealty agent Marissa Kjera, who also serves as the firm's Agent Development Director. "When we started using the website and got connected with Marissa, we got more serious about buying a home," says Jennifer. "Marissa was honest, straightforward and took into account everything we were looking for. We ended up finding and closing on our home within six months of starting our search!"

Jennifer and Ryan faced some challenges during their home buying process, which were overcome by Ms. Kjera's expertise and advisory services. "The (inspection) report was 86 pages long, but Marissa explained that the report was not as bad as it seemed and walked us through the issues we needed to pay attention to. We appreciated that she talked to us not just as a real estate agent, but also as a homeowner herself," she adds.

In addition to Ms. Kjera's advisement on where to purchase in the East Bay and how to submit an offer, Jennifer and Ryan were aided in their home search by ZipRealty's app that Ryan, a self-described "techie," used to search specific neighborhoods for localized results. Another helpful app feature is StreetScan, which allowed the couple to hold up their smart phone and point it down the street to see which homes were on the market and which ones recently sold.

For more real stories from first-time home buyers, check out We Did It: Real Stories from Real Buyers.

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www.ziprealty.com

About ZipRealty, Inc.
ZipRealty is a leading national real estate brokerage and provider of proprietary technology and comprehensive online marketing tools for the residential real estate brokerage industry. For home buyers and sellers who increasingly want control, choice and a seamless, customized service, ZipRealty offers Internet-enabled, state-of-the-art technology and complete access to accurate, timely information via their website and mobile applications, which real estate professionals can combine with their own local knowledge and personal expertise to offer an exceptional start-to-finish client experience. For real estate professionals who seek more productive ways to conduct business, ZipRealty provides technology and online marketing tools to enhance their online sales channel, including lead generation, conversion and service of their clients. ZipRealty's technology and online marketing products serve its full-service, owned-and-operated residential real estate brokerage business in 20 markets nationwide, as well as its Powered by Zip network of leading third-party local brokerages in 16 markets.

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