The PlaceSTAT service allows developers to get the location and shape of a specific geographic feature (for example a zip code, metro, county or state). This information can be used to draw more useful and informative maps and build better location-based services for Web, desktop and mobile applications. The API will also return information on a place’s relationship to other locations and allows developers to retrieve statistical information about a geographic area.
The free service offers 15 different statistics for more than 65,000 locations, from basic information like an area’s population to useful tidbits like average income levels and campaign contributions. The commercial version of the API makes more than 10,000 variables available for over 200,000 locations and is currently being used by a variety of cutting-edge websites including Cyberhomes.com, Foreclosure.com and PolicyMap.
“The Placebase content is pure sugar on our Web site! The maps are sweet and utterly addictive,” said Kris Goodfellow, director of product management for Cyberhomes.
“Over the past few years, we have been dedicated to bringing mapping and location information services to all developers - especially those without GIS backgrounds,” said Jaron Waldman, Founder and CEO of Placebase. “With today’s introduction of our place PlaceSTAT REST API, we have taken another step in making mapping and location-based applications easier for everyone.”
Placebase’s neighborhood statistics and geographic information is available in both free and commercial versions.
The free API provides a simple URL to retrieve statistics for any US:
• State
• County
• City
• Zip Code
• Census Tract
The Commercial API can also be queried by a variety of private datasets including:
• Urban Mapping™ Neighborhoods
• Census Block Groups
• Metropolitan areas
• Area Codes
• Parcels
• School Districts
• International Coverage
The 16 free statistical facts available in the API are
• Homeownership Rate
• Percent Married Households with Children
• Median Household Income
• Percent Foreign Born
• Percent Unemployed
• Population
• Population with a High School Degree
• Population with a Bachelor’s Degree
• Average Annual Rainfall
• Average January Temperature
• Average July Temperature
• Average Elevation in Meters
• Percent of all campaign contribution transactions that were to Hillary Clinton (PolicyMap)
• Percent of all campaign contribution transactions that were to Barak Obama (PolicyMap)
• Percent of all campaign contribution transactions that were to John McCain (PolicyMap)
• Percent of all home purchase loans that were subprime (PolicyMap)
The commercial version makes over 10,000 variables available from Pushpin Collections.
The API returns information in the three formats: HTML, KML and JSON. Currently, the Free version of the REST API is US-only.
More Information about the API is available at http://www.pushpin.com/api/docs/rest/ and examples of the commercial version of the API in action are available at www.cyberhomes.com and www.policymap.com.
About Pushpin
Pushpin™( www.pushpin.com) is an application platform for advanced mapping that offers a user experience identical to that of the portal mapping platforms. Pushpin’s advanced capabilities include availability of large numbers of map layers on tap, display of thousands of markers rather than dozens, and dynamic rendering of shaded thematic maps reflecting thousands of data variables. Pushpin provides name-brand mappable data via API, including demographic and lifestyle indicators from ESRI.and Claritas and parcel boundaries from Navteq.
About Placebase
Since its founding in 2001, Placebase, Inc. has been a leader in online mapping, creating hosted platforms that display highly sophisticated interactive maps in ordinary Web browsers, used by large and small organizations such as Foreclosure.com, Fidelity’s Cyberhomes, and TRF’s PolicyMap. More information about Placebase can be found at http://www.placebase.com.
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Placebase and Pushpin are trademarks of Placebase, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
