Real Estate Tips
How buyers find homes – the internet
The National Realtors Association (NRA) does studies each year to try and determine the sources of business ofr agents and to establish how buyers find properties. The NRA found that nationally 90% plus of all buyers used the internet and most used a link into the local Multiple Listing Service (MLS). We know that internet use is higher in the Puget Sound area, so we can logically say well over 90% of buyers are focused on their local MLS.
My personal experience is that buyers are texting me or emailing me potential properties they want to see. In this area buyers are driving the market using the internet.
The NRA study for 2012 is as follows:
Information sources used in home search:
- Internet: 90%
- Real estate agent: 87% (They use the MLS – internet)
- Yard sign: 53%
Real estate-related searches on Google.com rose 253 percent over the past four years and 22 percent on annual basis in the third quarter, according to internal Google data. Of the latter, about one-fifth of such searches occurred on mobile devices — a 120 percent year-over-year increase.
Nine out of 10 house hunters searched online during the home buying process with 52 percent choosing that as their first step in the process, the report said.