Frequently Asked Questions
How can I start using the app?
You just need to install the chrome extension, then browse on https://www.domain.com.au - just as you would normally!
As you browse listings, KoalaData augments the information that you see.
Does it work on other major real estate websites?
At the moment, the app only works on domain.com.au; however, we have plans to add support for realestate.com.au.
Are you planning to support Firefox?
Because Firefox is represents ~5% of the market share and would require a significant time investment, it's not a priority at this stage.
Where is the data coming from?
KoalaData takes regular snapshots of listings across the internet and relies on crowd-sourced content.
How far back does listing history go?
April 2020.
I have attended an auction over the weekend and it was passed in. How come it is not reflected on KoalaData yet?
If the property is still available on the market 48h after the scheduled auction time (the window given to the agents to update the listing), it is automatically flagged as "passed in".
How is the market median calculated? Why is it sometimes not available?
Every week, KoalaData analyzes the rentals available in the last 30 days in each suburb and postcode for different property types (number of bedrooms and apartment vs house/townhouse). Unlike most websites, KoalaData does not aggregate per postcode to better surface price differences in suburbs that share the same postcode.
The downside is that cities outside metropolitan areas may lack the necessary number of data points to build confidence in the median rent. When that happens, the median rent information is hidden.
How is the gross rental yield is calculated?
KoalaData matches the property you're browsing against its database of median rents to calculate the gross yield with the following formula: number of weeks in a year * median rent / property price.
How is the search price range calculated?
It crowdsources and cross-checks search price ranges from people using the app. For instance:
- Bob searches for house between 600k and 750k in Perth and sees house A, B, C
- Alice searches for house between 700k and 750k in Perth and sees house B
Then KoalaData would display that house B's price is in the 700-750k range.
The more users and the more searches, the more accurate the range is.
When you browse listings with a search price range, it takes a few seconds/minutes to update it so don't be surpised if your price range is not immediately reflected on the listing page.
Why am I seeing so many listings with "Price on application"/"Contact agent"?
Provision of a Statement of Information is only mandatory in Victoria, and real estate agents usually don't bother providing them in other states.
If a SOI is provided, KoalaData uses its Optical Character Recognition technology to extract the price from the document.
Because SOIs are often formatted differently, errors occasionally happen. You can report errors through thecomment feature on the listing itself.