Rentals.com Launches in Spanish

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In an effort to address the large and growing Hispanic market, while also helping more minorities access information about available rental property units within the United States, Rentals.com announced the launch of its new Spanish-language Web site at www.rentals.com.

“Connecting with the U.S. Hispanic Market Online”

“Providing rental information in Spanish is part of Rental.com’s goal to increase minority access to our comprehensive real estate listings,” said Steve Huey, senior vice president and general manager, Rentals.com. “It is also an invaluable tool for property managers who specialize in the Hispanic market and use online listing services to advertise available apartments and homes for rent.”

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the estimated Hispanic population in the United States as of July 1, 2006 was 44.3 million, making people of Hispanic origin the nation’s largest ethnic or race minority. At that time, Hispanics constituted 15 percent of the nation’s total population. (This estimate does not include the 3.9 million residents of Puerto Rico.)

Hispanic Rental Market Facts

Hispanic renter households grew from 31 percent in 1990 to 43 percent in 2004 ¹
The reach of Hispanic renters has extended beyond Texas, California and Florida to fast growth in Georgia, Washington, North Carolina and South Carolina ¹
U.S. Hispanic Internet users are on the rise from 15.7 million in 2005 to 17.7 million in 2007 ²
Regardless of language preference, Hispanics want access to online information in both English and Spanish ³

1. Jan. 1, 2006 Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard (JCHS) survey

2. eMarketer, 2006 Internet Usage survey

3. Jan. 2006 Captura Group, “Connecting with the U.S. Hispanic Market Online”

For $20, Rentals.com advertising customers may upgrade their rental property listings to include Spanish versions. Premier clients are able to use this offering complimentary for 60 days from the official date of launch – Sept. 19, 2007.

The Spanish language has many dialects and regional variants, some of which are quite divergent from standard written Spanish also known as neutral Spanish. While all Spanish dialects use the written standard, many spoken varieties differ.

“We sought to create an immersive experience that makes sense across dialects and regional variants,” said John Ujda, vice president, product management, Rentals.com. “As a result, we worked with DrTango, a firm specializing in Web site translation, to ensure accuracy and authenticity. In addition, we created our ‘Foreign Language Wizard,’ which enables English-only speaking landlords to create a listing in Spanish.”

Advertising Key Features & Benefits

Ability to reach the Spanish-speaking rental market and expand lead portfolio
Spanish and English listing capability allows property managers to reach Hispanic renters through their language of choice
Easy and convenient listings process includes the “Foreign Language Wizard,” which allows property managers and landlords to select descriptive property phrases in English and have those translated into Spanish
No Spanish knowledge is required to list in Spanish

About Rentals.com

Rentals.com is a comprehensive real estate rental site, providing single-unit and vacation rental information to consumers. The site encompasses nearly 45,000 complete listings, including its own as well as select inventory from ApartmentGuide.com. Its network of sites also delivers listings not only to Rentals.com, but RentalHouses.com and a variety of third party sites. For more information visit www.rentals.com.

About PRIMEDIA Inc.

PRIMEDIA Inc. (NYSE: PRM) is the parent company of Consumer Source Inc., an integrated media business that provides free print and online consumer guides for the apartment, auto and home industries. Consumer Source publishes and distributes more than 39 million guides and magazines – such as Apartment Guide^®, Auto Guide and New Home Guide – to approximately 60,000 U.S. locations each year through its proprietary distribution network, DistribuTech. The company also owns and operates numerous leading Web sites, including Rentals.com, a comprehensive real estate rental site that provides single-unit and vacation rental information. For more information visit www.primedia.com.