A recent study found that 1 in 100 Americans would sell their home if a neighbor with opposing political views bought the house next door. But as VOA correspondent Dora Mekouar reports, a new real estate app is giving buyers the chance to learn about a potential neighbor's political leanings before making one of the biggest purchases of their lives.
Most people get to know their neighbors after moving into a new home. But a new real estate app is offering the chance to learn about the political leanings of potential neighbors before you buy a property.
"The goal of the Oyssey platform is to democratize data for those who want to buy a home," says the co-founder of the Oyssey platform.
And Oyssey — a new real estate app that's launched in New York and Florida with the goal of expanding nationwide — does so by providing information from public records. Homebuyers will be able to find out whether their potential neighbors are Democrats or Republicans.
"It helps you figure out who you'd like to invite to dinner, figure out who you'd like to raise your kids around," says Mr. Kelly.
"It seems that the political identity of new neighbors is important to people, so I'm not surprised that some companies are selling that information or giving that information to potential buyers."
Ben McCartney is the co-author of a study that concluded that homeowners were somewhat more likely to move out if a new neighbor's political views differed from their own, than if those views were the same.
"So political polarization is not just a social media phenomenon, it is also influencing real economic decisions," he says.
The study found that 1 in 100 moves is politically motivated. People who are more likely to move for this reason tend to be less politically involved.
“They don't want politics to be part of their daily lives, but when a new neighbor is not only very vocal politically, but supports the opposite side, it creates conditions for stronger tensions,” says Prof. McCartney.
But will this app contribute to deepening America's political divisions? Oyssey co-founder Kelly doesn't think so.
"We are giving people the data and information to control their own destiny, and they can do whatever they want with that information. The data already exists," he says.
And the goal of the Oyssey platform is to make that public information easier to find. /VOA (A2 Televizion)
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