Building trust and anticipation in the home buying journey
How I turned familiar real estate patterns into meaningful, high trust experiences where Sneak Peek listings and thoughtful design help people feel confident finding a place they can truly call home.
When I’m searching for a new home, I want to feel confident and excited that I’m seeing real, trustworthy listings — ideally before everyone else — so I don’t miss out on my dream place.
JTBD insight
Estately didn’t need to outperform the competition; it needed to connect emotionally.
Seeing the opportunity behind familiarity
By 2024, consumer real estate apps had converged into near-identical experiences. Whether on Zillow, Redfin, or Trulia, the journey followed the same predictable loop: search → scroll → favorite → repeat.
The result? Every platform looked polished but felt transactional, more like a feed of houses than a sense of discovery.
Users told us they often felt one step behind the market, that by the time a great listing appeared, it was already gone.
Establishing the direction
How might we design a home buying app that builds trust like a financial product and anticipation like a limited drop — while keeping familiar UX patterns people already understand?
See it first, move with confidence
Users want the excitement of early discovery and the reassurance that what they see is real. Sneak Peek listings give them first access to new opportunities while reinforcing trust through verified data and agent transparency. The experience empowers users to act quickly and confidently without second-guessing authenticity.
Boost engagement through early access
From a business perspective, Sneak Peek listings turn anticipation into measurable action. By offering exclusive previews, Estately encourages users to return daily and connect with verified agents earlier in the buying journey. This drives both engagement and higher-quality leads for agents.
Make browsing emotionally rewarding
The design transforms everyday scrolling into moments of curiosity and delight. Subtle interactions—like tapping to reveal a blurred listing—add emotional texture to the experience. Each reveal feels like a small reward, deepening user attachment and making discovery genuinely enjoyable.
Build trust through craft and clarity
Every visual cue and motion detail reinforces credibility. Verified badges, recent timestamps, and agent licensing information make transparency feel tangible. Polished design and thoughtful motion language signal reliability, helping users trust both the product and the listings it presents.
Designing the Sneak Peek experience
The Sneak Peek flow builds excitement and trust through a familiar yet elevated experience. Users discover blurred “Sneak Peek” listings within regular search results, tap to reveal them with a smooth transition, and see transparent details like a “Verified by Estately” badge and recent update timestamp. A gentle countdown (“Goes public in 2 days”) adds urgency, while personalized notifications re-engage users when new previews appear in their saved areas.
Design explorations
The design direction evolved from data-first to emotion-first before landing on a balanced approach. The data-first concept emphasized transparency through timestamps and verification, but felt emotionally flat. The emotion-first version used blur effects, countdowns, and visual drama to create excitement, yet risked feeling gimmicky.
The final balanced direction combined verified transparency with subtle anticipation cues — achieving an experience that feels both credible and delightful.
I'm reminded that innovation isn’t always about new features — it’s about new emotions.
By weaving trust and anticipation into everyday patterns, I turned a routine real estate app into a confident, emotionally engaging experience.
Emotion over novelty
Innovation doesn’t always come from adding new features — it comes from creating new feelings. By introducing subtle anticipation and trust cues, I transformed ordinary moments into emotional connections.
From listings to storytelling
The new reel-style gallery invites users to experience homes, not just view them. Each video sequence feels cinematic and personal, helping buyers imagine their future rather than just browse properties.
Trust in every detail
Verified badges, timestamps, and agent credentials make transparency visible. Small signals of credibility build lasting confidence and turn exploration into assurance.
Design that feels human
Careful attention to tone, pacing, and motion created a rhythm that feels calm, intentional, and human.
Key flows
The redesigned key flows turned routine interactions into moments of trust and excitement. In search results, verified badges, timestamps, and a “Show Sneak Peek only” toggle made credibility effortless. Listing details highlighted authenticity with agent verification, license ID, and price history. Finally, personalized notifications like “That home you loved just dropped $15K” creates emotional momentum.
Search results — surfacing credibility
The familiar list view now includes timestamps and verified badges inline with price. A “Show Sneak Peek only” toggle simplifies discovery.
Listing detail — making trust visible
Verified agent, license ID, and price history. The “Early access ends in 2 days” bar appears just above the image carousel, adding urgency.
Favorites — transforming a utility into emotion
Renamed to Your shortlist. Each card shows dynamic updates like “Offer window opens soon.”