Note: Lofty is rolling out in stages. Depending on the version your account is on, some features or screens described in this article may look different or may not yet be available to you.
Introduction
When you review the Index Coverage Report in Google Search Console (GSC), you'll likely see a mix of errors, warnings, and excluded pages. Most of these don't require any action on your part — they're either Google-side timing issues or intentional decisions built into Lofty's SEO configuration.
The most important thing to watch: the overall trend of indexed pages. As long as your indexed page count is gradually increasing, your site is healthy. Don't fixate on individual issues in the report.
Common Index Coverage Issues Explained
The table below explains the most common issues you'll see in your GSC coverage report and what (if anything) to do about them.
| Issue | What it means | Action needed? |
|---|---|---|
| Alternate page with proper canonical tag | An AMP or mobile version of a page that correctly points to the canonical (primary) version. This is expected behavior — Google doesn't index AMP pages separately. | ❌ None |
| Discovered — currently not indexed | Google found the page but hasn't crawled it yet, likely to avoid overloading the server. It will be crawled in a future session. | ❌ None — monitor the trend |
| Crawled — currently not indexed | Google crawled the page but chose not to index it. It may be indexed in the future. Adding internal links to the page can help signal its value. | ⚠️ Consider adding internal links to the page |
| Excluded by 'no index' tag | A 'no index' tag tells Google not to index this page. For Lofty sites, this is intentional — unavailable listings and pages with no search results are intentionally excluded so Google prioritizes pages with valuable content. | ❌ None — this is by design |
| Server error (5xx) | The server was temporarily overloaded or undergoing maintenance when Google tried to crawl the page. Googlebot will retry automatically. These typically resolve within 2–5 weeks. | ❌ None — Lofty monitors these and they self-resolve |
| Page with redirect / Not Found (404) / Soft 404 | A property went off-market, or a page was deleted. These are normal — search engines gradually update their index to recognize removed listings. | ❌ None in most cases — removing listings is expected behavior |
| Duplicate, Google chose a different canonical than the user | Google determined a different page is the primary version than what the canonical tag specified. This rarely impacts overall site ranking — Google handles canonical conflicts appropriately. | ❌ None in most cases |
| Duplicate without a user-selected canonical | Similar pages where Lofty has implemented canonical tags to specify the primary version. If still showing, Google may not have updated its index yet. | ❌ None — contact support@lofty.com if you need canonical tag confirmation |
| Blocked by robots.txt | Lofty intentionally blocks URLs in the format yourdomain.com/house-listing... via robots.txt. These pages are for listing recommendation associations and hold no SEO value. |
❌ None — this is by design |
For full documentation from Google, see the Google Page Indexing Report.
What to Focus On Instead
Rather than investigating individual coverage issues, focus on the trend:
- Is the number of pages discovered by Google rising over time?
- Is the number of indexed pages gradually increasing?
If both are trending upward, your SEO is progressing in the right direction. Individual issues in the report are normal and expected for a real estate website with dynamic listing content.
Tips
- Check your coverage report monthly, not daily. Google's index updates on its own schedule — daily monitoring creates anxiety without actionable information.
- Don't request re-indexing for every individual page. Google Search Console allows you to request manual indexing for specific URLs, but using this excessively can have diminishing returns. Focus manual requests on your most important pages (Home, Featured Areas, blog posts).
- Connect your own GSC property. Lofty already monitors your site via its own GSC connection (see [SEO Optimization and Google Search Console Integration]) — but adding your own GSC property lets you see performance data directly.
Questions?
If you have any questions regarding this topic or any others, please reach out to our Support Team via email at support@lofty.com, by phone at 1 (855) 981-7557, or by chat with us through your Lofty CRM.
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