a la mode celebrates 19 years in the business of serving real estate professionals

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK — a la mode, inc., the nation's leading software and technology developer for real estate professionals, celebrated its 19th anniversary this month. Begun in 1985 with the simple idea that real estate appraisers could use new "personal computer" technolgy to more quickly and efficiently complete appraisal reports, today the company serves more than 50,000 appraisers, as well as thousands of real estate agents, mortgage professionals and home inspectors.

"One of the first appraisers to use a la mode form filling software probably used it to appraise a house worth around $80,000," said Matt Barr, the company's Communications Director. "Today, that same house, if typical for the United States, would be worth more than $202,000. If it's on the West Coast, it's worth more like $284,000. Property values in most parts of the country have risen aggressively in recent years, but it's not always like that. It takes a very long time for a property to appreciate by three and a half times, and that's quite the perspective on how long we've been around."

a la mode was founded in the same year IBM introduced the first 386 microprocessor, Toshiba introduced the first successful "portable PC," and Microsoft shipped Windows 1.0, Barr noted.

"The most successful software and technology isn't feature-driven, it's user-driven," Barr said. "The simple secret to our longevity is that we remember who pays us, and we give them what they need." a la mode software became the market share leader in the appraisal profession by being "by appraisers, for appraisers." Today, more than half the nation's appraisers use WinTOTAL, the successor of that first DOS-based form filling software program envisioned some 20 years ago.

Over time, the company has brought the same philosophy to new users, such as mortgage professionals, real estate agents and home inspectors. Tens of thousands of professionals serious about their real estate business use the company's workflow management tools, such as XSites, which allow them deploy a professional Web presence that manages transactions and communications with their clients and provide an integrated platform for their own day to day processes.

Bucking conventional wisdom, a la mode developed a free and open system for appraisers, their mortgage lending clients, agents and others to communicate, trade status updates on projects, and deliver paperless reports. "When we started our Mercury Network, and our EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) network that preceded it, everyone seemed to be glomming on to the idea that appraisers were a cash cow and could be charged per EDI transaction," Barr said.

"We were the first to embrace free, open access because we knew that it would get our customers more business. When our customers are busy and profitable, and have a choice of what software/standards/interfaces to use, they'll spend their money with us more often than not. It was a win/win/win, for us, our customers and the industry as a whole, and we're very proud of it."

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About a la mode

Founded in 1985, a la mode develops desktop tools, mobile tools, web sites for real estate professionals, mortgage brokers, and appraisers. a la mode's flagship product, WinTOTAL form-filling software for appraisers leads the residential appraisal industry. a la mode's Mercury Network, a vendor management platform for lenders, provides the most experienced local appraisers in an HVCC-compliant, easy-to-use loan ordering and management application. a la mode's mission-critical products are used by hundreds of thousands of appraisers, agents, inspectors, and lending professionals to complete the nation's real estate transactions. The company's state-of-the-art offices are located in Salt Lake City, Oklahoma City, and Washington, DC. To learn more, visit www.alamode.com.