Redfin Chief Executive Glenn Kelman is a funny guy. He is also one of those rare executives who actually speaks his mind, even when talking to members of the press.

But Kelman's sense of humor sometimes gets him in trouble -- as was the case recently when he labeled his company's blog entries about popular Seattle residential listings: "House Porn."

So, when I got a call from Kelman on Thursday about a new mapping technology being introduced by Redfin, which I wrote about in this story, here is how the energetic executive described the service:

"People are like on crack when they use it in our focus groups," he said.

What he meant, of course, is that the service is highly addictive. And after playing with it a little bit tonight, I tend to agree. What it allows you to do is pull up statistical housing information -- for the moment median list prices, average bedrooms, etc. -- based upon what you are viewing on the map. Moving the map a few hundred yards -- on top of hills, closer to lakes, next door to airports -- can dramatically alter median list prices of homes. It is an intriguing way to search for housing information, with Kelman saying that they plan to add new data points such as crime statistics, neighborhood blogs and other information in the coming months.

Services such as these, along with Zillow's new aerial house view, proves that Seattle is probably the best place in the country to research a new home purchase. And with housing prices continuing to skyrocket, home buyers need all the tools they can get.