Where do buyer research homes offline these days?  It wasn’t all that long ago that your home had to be listed in the newspaper, especially the Sunday paper and if you got in one of those free home magazines that you could find at the gas station that was a real bonus. Those times are long gone these days! With over 90% of buyers searching for their home online, that is the most frequently used medium. How important are tv advertisements or signs in marketing a home and providing information? 88% of buyers use a real estate agent to help them answer their questions. Agents seem to fill the gap between what buyers find online and what they still want to know.  Click the photo below for a larger version of how buyers use offline resources to do their home research.

Research Homes Offline

Take a look at the home buyer statistics for Minnesota vs. the Nation provided by the Minnesota Association of Realtors.  Who are the buyers, what types of homes are they buying and where are they searching?

Characteristics of Minnesota Home Buyers

• 41% of recent home buyers were first-time buyers in Minnesota, compared to a national level of 39%, which is a slight rise from 2011.
• The typical buyer in Minnesota was 37 years old, while nationally the typical buyer was 42 years old, a modest decrease from 45 in 2011.
• The 2011 median household income of buyers was $80,600 in Minnesota and $78,600 nationally.  The median income was $57,000 among first-time buyers and $96,800 among repeat buyers, compared to $61,800 among first-time buyers and $93,100 among repeat buyers nationally.
• Nationally, 65% of recent home buyers were married couples—the highest share since 2001.  In Minnesota, the figure was 58%.  16% of recent home buyers were single females nationally—the lowest share since 2001; 19% were single females in Minnesota.
• For 30% of recent home buyers nationally, the primary reason for the recent home purchase was a desire to own a home.  In Minnesota, this was the primary reason for 27% of recent home buyers. (more…)

The home search process has changed over the years.  It is no longer enough to put up a sign and an ad in the newspaper.  The National Association of Realtors has published their profile of home buyers and sellers for 2012.  According to their study the following is true about home buyers:

• 41% of home buyers searched online as their first step in buying a home
• 11% of buyers looked for information on buying a home online
• 90% of buyers use the internet to search for homes but for those under age 44 that number jumps to 96%
• 87% of buyers used a real estate agent and found it useful to use one
• The average buyer searched for 12 weeks and viewed 10 homes
• 9 out of 10 recent buyers were satisfied with their home buying process

This is just a reminder for anyone wanting to sell their home in today’s market – the internet is a key factor in getting your home sold.  My listings are on well over 100 different websites for the widest possible exposure.  Give me a call or send me an email to talk about my marketing plan.

A frequent question that sellers ask is how buyers search for homes?  It used to be that you would find homes in the newspaper, in those free magazines at the supermarket or the gas station, Realtors has mls books the size of a jumbo telephone book and so on.  Now with the boom in technology, the whole method of searching for a home has changed.  The 2011 National Association of REALTORS® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers found the following to be how buyers search for homes today:

Information sources used in home search:

•     Internet: 88%
•     Real estate agent: 87%
•     Yard sign: 55%
•     Open house: 45%
•     Newspaper ad: 30%
•     Home book or magazine: 19%