Interesting facts abut buyers and sellers
Most of us have been on both sides of the real estate fence. We have been both buyers and sellers during our adult lives. In spite of or maybe because of our real estate experiences, we may not understand the person on the opposite side when it comes time to do business. The National Association of Realtors published some highlights from its 2014 profile of home buyers and sellers, which may help to explain both sides.
Purchasing a home is still the American dream and one of, if not the largest, financial transaction that most people will make. However, purchasing a home is not only an investment, it also is where your family will live, grow and make memories. When it’s time to sell your home and move on to another one because of job changes, family structure or retirement, it is stressful and sometimes traumatic. The National Association of Realtors has analyzed some of the insight and information about buyer and seller experiences in its 2014 report.
First time, primary home buyer statistics were down in 2014, coming in at 33 percent from a historical norm of 40 percent. For 43 percent of home buyers, the first step in the home-buying process was looking online for properties. Ninety-two percent of buyers use the Internet in some way in their home search process, and 50 percent of buyers use a mobile Website or application in their home search.
Ninety-eight percent of buyers use a real estate agent while searching for a home. Seventy percent of home sellers only contacted one agent before selecting the one to market their home sale. Only 9 percent of home sellers did so without the assistance of a real estate agent, and 44 percent of these sellers already knew the buyer prior to the home sale. The typical home buyer searched for 10 weeks and viewed 10 homes, which is two weeks shorter than the previous year’s statistic.
What this analysis tells me is that being a real estate agent is still a great career move and that the Internet is front and center in the real estate market. These two facts may seem like they’re working against each other, but in reality, what they’re telling us is today’s buyers and sellers demand up to the minute information and are the most well informed in history.
On line residential real estate Websites designed for buyers, sellers, renters and real estate professionals are easy to find, informative and user friendly. Realtor.com, Zillow, Trulia as well as most real estate company Websites will provide you with most available listings in the area you’re considering. These sites are generally linked to the multiple listing services and will reflect everything on multiple listing, but not private sellers.
And if you’re looking for a specific property, another trick I discovered is if you just Google a street address you will likely hit on a listing for that property without having to search some of the real estate Websites. Also, property appraisers all have Websites reflecting properties in their counties. These sites are public information, and you don’t require a password to gain access. This is also a good way to determine information about a property you’re considering, including size, last sale price and all previous sales history.
The more we change the more we stay the same. Buying a home is less a mystery than when our parents bought their first home, but it still remains a people to people transaction. Just remember that no matter which side of the fence you’re on.