CONTEXT
The Problem
Cotality initially framed the challenge as: agents want premium reports, but Realist’s outdated interface makes them difficult to find and purchase. Through interviews, however, we uncovered a different reality: agents weren’t eager to buy reports at all. Instead, they preferred doing the extra legwork to gather data themselves. What they truly needed was a faster way to access the critical property details and the ability to package that information into a polished, client-ready report. We reframed the problem: each property has unique, variable data. How can we quickly surface the most relevant insights so real estate professionals can confidently advise clients and present trustworthy, polished reports?
Our SOLUTION
My Role
As Project Lead, I defined key decisions, kept scope and timeline intact, and ensured alignment between user needs and business goals. I encouraged team members to set and achieve their own learning goals while serving as a sounding board for problem-solving and validation.
Research Contributions
Developed the research plan
Led the heuristic evaluation
Led the competitive analysis
Supported others as they led a survey, user interviews, and usability studies
Solution Contributions
Data Highlights
Custom Layout
The Impact
Our work delivered results on multiple levels. For users, the redesigned Property Details page reduced friction, surfaced critical data faster, and provided new transparency features that built trust in AI-driven insights. For the business, the Data Highlights feature unlocked a clear path to revenue growth through a tiered access model and contextual premium report recommendations. And at the organizational level, our research and concepts directly informed a proposal for up to $1.6M in funding, helping unify stakeholder vision and strengthening CEO-level presentations that secured momentum for Realist’s future.
We started with two assumptions
Our team of five partnered with Cotality (formerly CoreLogic), a data powerhouse in the property technology space, to reimagine Realist—a flagship product generating $21M annually by surfacing property data for real estate professionals. The challenge seemed straightforward: agents want premium reports, but Realist’s outdated interface makes them hard to find and buy.
As Project Lead, I guided our research strategy and design vision, ensuring our work connected to both user needs and business goals. I also owned key contributions in research and solution design, while fostering an environment where each teammate could grow in areas they cared about. Very quickly, however, our research began to reveal that the problem wasn’t what it first appeared to be—setting the stage for us to rethink those original assumptions.
BUT THEY reflected only the lens of the business, so we expanded our lens.
To validate them, I developed a research plan that ensured we examined all three lenses at play: the users, the product itself, and the business. This framework helped me guide the team in keeping our research both actionable for stakeholders and expansive enough to show where Realist fits in the broader market. From there, we were able to define the real problem to tackle in the design phase.
LENS: THE USERS
we learned agents don’t trust THAT premium reports provide enough value to justify the cost
Through interviews with agents and brokers, we mapped their workflow across four phases and discovered that Realist played only a small role as a final stop in the research process to double-check details. Agents were willing to put in extra effort elsewhere to gather the same information for free, because they doubted that a paid report would provide anything more useful or reliable.
LENS: THE APP
but The Assumption about Realist as outdated and difficult Holds true
From our interviews with real estate professionals and product trainers, we found that users primarily relied on Realist for three purposes:
Targeting prospects: narrowing their marketing scope to homes likely to sell.
Final research checks: spotting red flags that might derail a sale—often requiring further digging through desk research or even trips to the tax office.
Client-ready reports: producing printable, brandable reports that looked polished enough to share with clients.
LENS: THE Business
And Realist faces rising threats in an increasingly oversaturated Market.
Our competitive analysis revealed the bigger risk: Realist wasn’t just missing out on report sales, it risked losing relevance entirely. Newer platforms offered sleeker workflows and modern client communication tools, putting pressure on Cotality to ensure Realist remained the go-to property research tool.
realist could become the premier, one-stop-shop for property data if cotality aligns business goals with user needs.
The key is integrating the platform seamlessly into agents’ workflows: providing comprehensive data is not enough—it must be surfaced at the right moment, packaged into client-ready reports, and made actionable. By designing Realist to work for professionals rather than forcing them to work around it, we can create a tool that feels natural, logical, and indispensable.
Solutions I Led
Data Highlights
An AI-powered section surfacing critical data and red flags upfront, with natural language summaries and transparent sourcing. Premium reports are suggested in context, making them feel supportive rather than pushy.
Custom Layout
An AI-powered section surfacing critical data and red flags upfront, with natural language summaries and transparent sourcing. Premium reports are suggested in context, making them feel supportive rather than pushy.
Solutions Led by Team Members
VISUAL REPORT BUILDER
A redesigned export flow where agents can easily create attractive, branded reports for clients.
Navigation redesign
Sidebar categories that make exploring both core and premium reports faster and more intuitive.
QUICK WINS
Small but significant changes across the UI to remove daily frustrations and boost usability.
SOLUTION 1
Data Highlights: Quickly surfaces red flags and key property details
Placed at the top of the property details page, this section brings essential information front and center, reducing time spent scanning. Users can explore specific data via tabs, access original sources, or opt for a premium report, all without breaking their workflow.
1
AI Overview: key property insights in plain language
This section uses SQL and generative AI to surface the most relevant information and present it in natural language, letting agents grasp critical details quickly without digging through raw data.
HOW IT WORKS
SQL and large language models review and analyze available property data against benchmarks to identify potential red flags. These insights are summarized in natural language, while all specific data points are highlighted and clickable—showing what they mean, how calculations are made, and their original sources.
-Participant 2
2
Data tabs: allow for contextual premium report recommendations
Data Tabs let real estate professionals drill down into specific types of property data, providing more detailed overviews and highlights tailored to their needs. They also enable premium report suggestions, but only when the property data meets specific criteria. Each recommendation includes a clear rationale, so users understand why it’s relevant which helps them feel supported and confident in their workflow rather than pressured to make a purchase.
HOW IT WORKS
Each Data Tab reviews a specific set of property data and compares it against benchmarks to determine significance. Some data points are always displayed due to their critical importance, while others appear only when they are noteworthy. If certain data exceeds predefined thresholds, a recommended premium report is triggered, accompanied by an explanation of why the suggestion was made—helping users understand its relevance and supporting their decision-making.
What test participants thought
Even participants who had previously insisted they would never buy a premium report were receptive when it was presented in context. They felt the recommendations were relevant and useful, making them more likely to consider a purchase.
3
variable Data pulls The critical information to the top
The Data Highlights categories surface the key data that users were already searching for among thousands of points, helping them quickly see what’s important and identify where to dig deeper to understand a property.
-Participant 3
It works because AI enhances rather than Dominates
The Data Highlights section was an overwhelming success with test participants who loved how it made their jobs easier. It shows the power of thoughtful design when grounded in research.
Based in data
It surfaces the same trusted information earlier in the workflow.
Transparent
Clear sourcing and explanations build trust, especially with AI-generated insights.
Workflow-aligned
It saves time by fitting into existing research habits.
Flexible
Future iterations could let users toggle how much “AI voice” they wanted, appealing to both skeptics and early adopters.
But An Over Explanation of data sources is critical to build trust
In the first iteration, we thought we had done enough to deliver on transparency, but users needed more before they could trust it explicitly.
Data Transparency
Our research revealed that users don’t fully trust Realist to deliver a comprehensive, one-stop report, especially in AI-driven sections. To build confidence, they need clear visibility into data sources, calculations, and the reasoning behind conclusions. We tested solutions such as information icons, AI explanations, and data callouts, and found that users welcome AI, but only when it’s accompanied by thorough explanations upfront.
Key takeaway: Transparency isn’t optional. Clear popovers that show data sources, explain calculations, and link to supporting details help users move from hesitation to trust.
and Users want to see customization options
A future enhancement could let users control what the AI Overview includes and adjust the tone or subjectivity of the AI’s voice, giving them greater confidence and ownership over the information presented.
CUSTOMIZATIONS
We learned that users want control over the AI and how data is presented. Users who trust the AI prefer it to draw conclusions, while those who are more cautious want it to stick strictly to the facts.
How it works: Introduce the AI Summary with a basic version first, then consider adding features that let users select which datapoints are included and adjust the AI’s voice or subjectivity via a settings screen that applies across all properties, not just individually.
SOLUTION 2
custom layout failed to match agent workflows, leading to confusion and frustration.
We initially improved the customization functionality to let users hide and reorder sections of the property details page, assuming that each agent had their own priorities for what data mattered most. Testing revealed this assumption was incorrect, showing that customization actually added unnecessary complexity rather than value.
customization costs too much time
Users couldn’t justify spending time customizing the property details page, as it didn’t meaningfully improve their workflow.
they would never want to hide the data
Even information they rarely used, users wanted all data visible, so they could decide what to consider or share with clients.
reordering the information just causes confusion
Users preferred the familiar layout, as they had mentally mapped the page and knew exactly where to find information.
we translATED research-backed design into measurable impact.
Our research and designs delivered results across multiple levels. On the revenue side, the Data Highlights feature introduced new opportunities through a tiered access model. From an adoption perspective, users responded positively, demonstrating strong satisfaction and validation. Strategically, close collaboration with stakeholders and the Realist team strengthened funding proposals and CEO-level presentations, ensuring our work aligned with both business goals and long-term vision.
Revenue Potential
Data Highlights created a natural path to premium reports and tiered access models.
User Adoption
Usability tests showed unanimous clarity in navigating redesigned workflows.
$1.6M Funding
Our research and concepts directly informed a proposal for up to $1.6M in funding and helped unify stakeholder vision.
Leadership Reflection
What I’m most proud of is how much my team grew over the course of six months. By encouraging experimentation and pushing them to try new approaches, we were able to create creative and impactful solutions to a challenging problem. I guided the team in connecting insights across users, product, and business, set a research strategy that elevated discussions, led design on critical features, and recommended removing features when evidence showed they added friction. This project not only reimagined Realist’s future but also strengthened my skills as a design leader—balancing user empathy with business strategy to drive meaningful change.
