Real $3.1M mansion causes a virtual stir

Flipping through the real estate section is so yesterday -- touring an exact replica of a home for sale in Second Life is what's in store tomorrow.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Gone are the days of browsing through the newspaper in search of houses on the market. Now, most potential buyers look online and and view slide shows. But soon they'll be walking virtually through homes and even sneaking a look at what's in the refrigerator.

That's what Coldwell Banker is banking on. The real estate firm has created a brightly colored, three-dimensional reproduction of a $3.1 million property on Mercer Island, Wash. in Second Life.
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This marks the first time that a real estate firm has used the virtual community to market an actual home for sale, according to a spokesman for Second Life. But it likely won't be the last.

"I think it's very innovative and could very well start a trend," said Brad Inman, founder of Inman News Service, which covers the real-estate industry.

Inman says this is the next step up from virtual video tours, which have been a very successful real estate marketing method. "Sellers are always looking for all sorts of clever ways to sell a property," he said.

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