|
|
Using MapPoint for various Real Estate activities
If you work in real estate, you can use Microsoft® MapPoint® 2010 to help with the following types of activities:
- Locating listings
- Calculating routes to show properties
- Finding places of interest near properties
- Performing demographic analysis
The exercises in this Test Drive provide a guided experience of some of the ways to work with MapPoint 2010. The real estate agent in this scenario is located in the Seattle area. Her client is looking for a property within a specific price range that is also within a 10-minute drive of her office. The agent needs to target properties that fit these criteria and calculate an efficient route between them.
You can explore MapPoint in this fully functional Test Drive environment and see for yourself how key features of MapPoint can make light work of common real estate tasks. It is easy to translate the skills acquired in this Test Drive to other industries where spatial data and mapping can help improve decision making.
To start MapPoint:
On the Start menu, click All Programs, and then click Microsoft MapPoint North America 2010.
Exercise 1: Import listings
You are the listing agent for several properties whose details are stored in a Microsoft Office Excel® worksheet. You need to use the Excel data to plot the property locations on the map and assign different symbols and colors to represent the price ranges of the properties.
- On the Data menu, click Import Data Wizard.
The Import Data Wizard starts.
- On the first page of the wizard, in My Documents folder, click the Real Estate Data workbook, and click Open.
- On the next page of the Import Data Wizard, select Seattle Listings, click Next, and then click Finish to map the listing to the map.
Note: When you import your own database, MapPoint might flag some records as unmatched, meaning it cannot find an exact match to an existing street address. It is possible the record has more than one match on the map. You can skip the record, or you can map it to one of the addresses suggested by MapPoint.
The Data Mapping Wizard starts, prompting you to select the type of map you want to use.
- On the Map Type page, click Multiple Symbol, and then click Next.
- On the Data Fields page, in the data fields list, select Price, and then click Next.
You can also specify criteria by which to sort your data, and you can apply various calculations to the data, such as totaling the values, averaging the values, and counting the number of items.
- On the Legend page, accept the default title for the legend. Accept the default colored circle symbols, or select another type of symbol from the Symbol lists.
Many symbols are available, including pushpins, flags, and shapes.
- Click Finish to display the imported data on the map.
You can click the Zoom In or Zoom Out button or adjust the magnifying slider on the Advanced toolbar to broaden or narrow the focus of your view. To pan the map, move the mouse pointer near any edge of the map window, and click when the large white arrow appears.
Note: For information about other ways to move around the map, see the MapPoint Help file.
Leave the map open to continue with the next exercise.
Exercise 2: Locate listings within a drivetime zone
A client is interested only in properties that are within a 10-minute drive of her office. You need to display a visual representation on the map of all listings that meet this criterion. You can then export the listings to a Microsoft Office Excel workbook, where you can sort them by criteria such as price and number of bedrooms. You can also send both the workbook and the map to your client via e-mail. Use the map that you created in the previous exercise.
- On the Advanced toolbar, in the Find box, type 5025 36th Ave SW, Seattle, WA, and then press ENTER.
The map is now centered on this address, which is designated by a pushpin.
- Right-click the pushpin, and click Create Drivetime Zone.
- In the dialog box, use the arrows to select 10 minutes as the drivetime zone.
- Select the Draw drivetime zone behind roads and the Fill drivetime zone with solid color check boxes, and then click OK to calculate the zone.
The drivetime zone is shown on the map with a blue fill color. From the address you entered, you can drive to any point in this zone within 10 minutes.
- To change the fill color of the drivetime zone, first click the edge of the zone to select it. Then, on the Drawing toolbar at the bottom of the window, click the Fill Color arrow, and select a color from the gallery. The entire drivetime zone is filled in with the color you selected.
Note: If the Drawing toolbar is not shown, click View, and then Toolbars. Select Drawing from the menu to show the toolbar.
- Right-click the drivetime zone, and click Export to Excel or click the Excel icon on the Standard toolbar.
A new Excel workbook is created containing only the records for the properties that are in the drivetime zone. The workbook consists of three separate worksheets: - MapPoint: Summary data for the new workbook
- My Pushpins: Data for the address on which the drivetime zone is centered
- RealEstateData: Information from the worksheet imported into MapPoint about each of the properties in the drivetime zone.
You can save this workbook for future reference or send the workbook to your client.
Leave the map open to continue with the next exercise.
Exercise 3: Display points of interest
The property at 5477 Beach Drive SW, Seattle, looks perfect for one of your client couples. It is within the specified driving time from their office and in their price range. Now your clients want to know whether there is a library and an art gallery in the neighborhood. You use MapPoint to display nearby points of interest. Use the map that you created in the previous exercise.
- First remove the drivetime zone from the map by clicking the edge of the zone to select it and then pressing DELETE.
Removing the zone will enable you to more clearly see the points of interest.
- To center the map on the target property, type 5477 Beach Drive SW, Seattle, WA in the Find box on the Advanced toolbar, and then press ENTER.
- Right-click the property's pushpin, and then click Find Nearby Places.
The Find Nearby Places task pane opens to the left of the map.
- In the task pane's Search box, type or use the arrows to select 2.5 miles as the distance to search from the selected property.
A shaded circle with the property at its center is drawn on the map, encompassing an area that is 2.5 miles from the property in all directions.
Note: By default, the results of the search are sorted by distance from the property, but you can also sort them alphabetically.
- At the top of the task pane, click Categories, and then in the dialog box, click the Places tab.
- Click Clear all. Then select the Galleries and Libraries check boxes, and click Apply and then OK.
The task pane shows one gallery and three libraries within 2.5 miles of the property.
- Click the + icon next to Libraries to view the libraries found in the search.
- Double-click one of the libraries to display it on the map.
Address and phone number information is included in the display.
- On the Standard toolbar, click the Legend and Overview icon to hide the search circle.
Leave the map open to continue with the next exercise.
Exercise 4: Map an efficient route between multiple locations
You have located a property that meets your client's criteria. When you show the property to your client, you want to tour a few other properties in the same neighborhood. You can have MapPoint optimize the route between the properties. Use the map that you created in the previous exercise.
- Right-click the target property on Beach Drive, point to Route, and then click Add as Start.
A green box with the number 1 flags that property on the map, marking it as the first stop on your route.
- Right-click another property with a red circle (indicating the same price range), point to Route, and then click Add as Stop.
A yellow box with the number 2 flags that property, marking it as the second stop on your route.
- Repeat Step 2 until you have three or four stops on your route. All stops are marked with yellow boxes.
- On the Route menu, click Directions, or on the Standard toolbar, click the Directions icon.
MapPoint calculates and highlights a route from stop to stop. You may print a copy of the map and driving directions by clicking on the Print icon in the Navigation toolbar.
Note: You cannot print to your own printer from the Test Drive environment.
- To change the order of the stops, on the Route menu, click Route Planner. Or on the Standard toolbar, click the Route Planner icon. The Route Planner task pane opens to the left of the map.
- In the task pane, click the third stop, and then click the Move Up button once. Stop 3 becomes the second stop on the route.
Note: In the Route Planner task pane, you can also optimize, delete, and add stops or clear the route. By clicking More Options, you can change settings such as driving speed, fuel consumption, and driving costs.
- On the Route menu, point to Route, and then click Clear Route.
Removing the route from your map will make it easier to view the demographic analysis you will create in the next exercise.
Exercise 5: Generate a demographic analysis
Your client has a preference for an established neighborhood where most of the houses are owner-occupied, rather than rental properties. You can plot hundreds of demographic variables, right down to the ZIP code or census block. Use the map that you created in the previous exercise.
- On the Data menu, click Data Mapping Wizard.
The Data Mapping Wizard starts.
- On the Map Type page, click Shaded Area, and then click Next.
- On the Data Set page, select the Add demographics to the map option, and then click Next.
Note: From this page, you can also import or link data, or edit the existing data map.
- On the Data Fields page, in the data fields list, select the Housing: owner-occupied dwellings (2007) check box.
- In the Divide the data you chose above by list, select Households: total (2007), and in the Show the data by list, select ZIP Code. Then click Next.
- On the Legend page, click the Color arrow, and then in the gallery, click the color scheme in which demographic data should be shown on the map.
- Click Finish.
Darker colored areas represent higher densities of owner-occupied dwellings.
Note: You can click the Zoom In or Zoom Out button on the Advanced toolbar to customize your view.
Congratulations! You have completed the exercises. You may now close MapPoint without saving your changes. Ready to buy MapPoint or view additional product information? Select one of the options below: Buy MapPoint North America 2010 Buy MapPoint North America 2010 with GPS Free Trial
|
Features
