How about a a new website like homefact.ie?

The Irish Property Bubble The Republic of Property
#21

I reckon homefacts.ie is perfect fodder for a parody site alright.

As for the need for sites giving the real facts, I’ve been doing some work on setting up a website with impartial information and analysis on topics like property, planning, local government, transport, financial markets etc in Ireland.

A site that your average punter can visit knowing that what he or she reads there isn’t an advertorial or a rehashed press release like most Irish media currently carry. Informative, unbiased, no bullshit or marketing-speak, and hopefully a decent standard of writing and debate.

Complementary to the 'Pin, but with a wider focus and based around stories rather than forums (but with a forum in the mix too). Some similarities with a site like SluggerOToole.com, but avoiding party politics.

With the right people contributing, it will hopefully become a kind of a distributed research project, with members pitching in with more and more information and analysis on each topic to give them more depth. We have done some of this within various threads on the 'Pin lately, but it isn’t collected together or accessible for a general audience.

I’m toying with the idea of being a bit picky with membership & posting rights to keep the standard of discussion up. Also want to get lecturers and postgrads from the various universities involved (I think they have a lot to add to debates but are usually ignored by the Irish media in favour of the “industry” economists or spokespersons), and as many members and anonymous tippers from the “front line” in public and private sectors as possible.

Anyhow, so far I’ve got a basic Drupal site up on a domain, and am drafting three topic-starter articles to kick it off:

  • Property Developments in Ballsbridge
  • Affordable Housing in Dublin
  • Irish-Owned Enterprise & the “Knowledge Economy”

Hopefully I’ll have something worth looking at by the end of next week. In the meantime, fire away with any views on the general idea, by PM if you prefer.

#22

I think this is a good idea as long as it does not look like a loon wrote it. You may or may not know what I mean here. There has to be a little bit of balance so as not to sound like conspiracy theorists.

#23

Liking this idea.

I think the site shouldn’t be too Onion like… what I think would work best would be to counterplay the BS the VIs are coming out with ( which is pure comedy already), with the cold hard realities of things like 40 year mortgages & Irish bankrupcy laws !

#24

Any chance of putting a “rent vs buy” calculator on the site? One that prompts for all the costs:

  • management fees
  • deposit
  • non-FTB costs
  • legal fees
  • opportunity loss
    etc.

A bit like the NY times one, maybe?
nytimes value calculator

#25

somefacts.ie is available… :wink:

#26

theshortspan.com/rentorbuy/rentorbuy.htm
Very rough but anyone can take the code and use it

#27

Speaking of recent website innovations, this reminds me of the “Dublin Coastal Development”

atlanticquarter.ie/

#28

Oh dear, nothing worse than a presentation trying to look cool. alluring and sophisticated…but containing spelling errors on the text.

#29

What about calling it Caveatemptor.com?

Just to confuse the EAs like, in case they want to read it.
:laughing:

#30

How www.thepropertypin.com ? :wink:

To be honest yea can propose stuff in the open web development if you like and maybe it can happen on the pin.

If I have time I might have wordpress running by the weekend as the pin official blog so people can write articles. I would love to see some hot rebuttals of the pertinent issues & developments.

#31

How about starting with a simple ‘parody’ site with cold hard facts? If we base the site on the content of Homefacts then we dont have to agonise about the editorial content too much. We can start out with a very basic version and build on it slowly. Once up the site shouldnt need much day to day work.

We need an action team with specific responsibilities.

2-3 guys on a build with one heading it up. Maybe one on the back end one on layout/design and one generalist / project leader.

2-3 guys on editorial content with one heading it up. Any contributions send to the editorial team and editors decision is final

2-3 on marketing the site SEO PPC and PR with one heading it up

This leaves the site run by Project Leader Editor and Marketing.

If some one could organise a poll for a name that would be great. Maybe start with a thread asking for suggestions giving a deadline. Poll the suggestions and off we go.

I will volunteer as one of the marketing guys. Mods are we ok to use the pin the get this sucker launched.

#32

If there is anyway in which I can help, count me in.
It’s our social responsibility to counteract the CIF spin… if only one person is made to think again about a purchase because of it, it would be worth while.

#33

magoko101 what can you help with?

#34

If its a direct rebuttal to the CIF one I’ll help with editoral some of the other suggestions while good would require to much work/effort.

#35

I should be able to assist on the development site… I must bow to the superior economic knowledge of other pinsters …

How about this for a banner?

#36

Ok we got one of editorial team - BYG. One development - magoko101. One marketing POD. I remember a quote from years ago ‘Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men’ T.A. Lawrence. Lets be dangerous. Any more volunteers?

#37

Looks like were up and running with homefacts antidote site. magoko101 is building. Hosting is sorted by daltonr. So guys lets see if your liarodi are as big as your mouths :smiley: Luckily size isnt everything as Im a bit of a raisin man myself. All you have to do is propose your text in place of the existing text on the homefacts website but with facts or based on facts. post your articles on the site or pm them to me. Open window may get word press up (what ever that is) and we can use that.

Try to keep grammer and spelling proper! lots of parody controversy and humor please.

Oh yea I will register a site name today. I cant say what it is yet in case there is a saboteur in our midst!

#38

Here is a very rough sample of what I would be thinking about…
Let me know if I should remove the link… and feel free to provide some input.

magoko101.110mb.com/realfacts.htm

#39

I think there has to be a clear guide to the implications of Bankruptcy in Ireland. If people have a better understanding of the potential consequences of negative equity they’re more likely to avoid it.

I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of people I’ve found who realise they could loose everything they own if the default on the mortgage.

#40

A Banner?

https://img337.imageshack.us/img337/4466/vijg0.gif

link
img337.imageshack.us/img337/4466/vijg0.gif