Since 2000, the share of home buyers
using the Internet has grown from 28 percent to 70 percent
in 2006. Internet buyers are younger, wealthier, better
educated and more likely to be married than traditional
buyers. Internet buyers also reported greater satisfaction
with the home-buying process compared with traditional
buyers.
Lucky for Realtors, most buyers consider the Internet
an information source -- not a substitute for hiring a
Realtor. In fact, nine out of 10 Internet buyers hired
a Realtor to help them in the homebuying process. They
were generally more satisfied with their agents because
of their responsiveness.
C.A.R. President Vince Malta observes that while the Internet
is changing the dynamics between buyers and their agents
because of its use as a research tool, it has only enhanced
the Realtor's role in the transaction. "Buyers continue
to rely on their Realtor's help with interpreting the
information gathered from the Internet and to guide them
through the home-buying process," he says.
According to the survey, more than nine out of 10 Internet
buyers indicated that the Internet helped them better
understand the process of buying a home. Additionally,
Internet buyers are accustomed to receiving more frequent
communication and faster response times from their Realtors.
High-speed Internet access at home enables buyers to gather
information on all types of products and services quickly
and easily, suggests Malta. "This trend has carried
over to the process of buying a home. As a result, home
buyers are more informed, have a greater sense of control
over the process, and hold high expectations concerning
how quickly they receive information," he notes.
Internet buyers and traditional buyers expressed significant
differences in how they conducted their home-buying research.
Internet buyers conducted more research at the onset of
the home-buying process, while traditional buyers relied
more on their agent as their source of information.
Other key findings from C.A.R.'s 2006 Internet Versus
Traditional Buyer Survey include:
* The median age of Internet buyers was 39 years compared
with a median of 42 years for traditional buyers.
* More than nine out of 10 Internet buyers were married,
while nearly eight of 10 traditional buyers were married.
* Seventy-three percent of Internet buyers had at least
a four-year college degree and 11 percent completed
post-graduate work. By comparison, 72 percent of traditional
buyers held a college degree and 5 percent completed
post-graduate work.
* Internet buyers had an annual income of $184,900,
compared with $148,910 for traditional buyers.
* Internet buyers spent an average of 5.8 weeks considering
buying a home before contacting a Realtor, nearly three
times more than traditional buyers, who spent 2 weeks
in this stage of the home-buying process.
* Internet buyers spent 2.2 weeks looking for the home
they ultimately purchased, compared with 7.1 weeks for
traditional buyers.
* Fifty-four percent of Internet buyers said the information
that they gathered from the Internet was less useful
than that provided by their Realtor; none considered
the information gathered from the Internet to be more
useful than that obtained from their Realtor.
* All first-time buyers typically spent 5.3 weeks considering
buying a home and 4.3 weeks investigating homes for
sale before contacting a Realtor. They then spent 3.2
weeks previewing eight homes with their Realtor.
* All repeat buyers spent 3.3 weeks considering buying
a home and nearly three weeks investigating homes for
sale on their own. They spent 5.4 weeks previewing 13
homes with their Realtors.
Concludes the analysis of the report, "In the
future, agents who want to maintain their competitive
edge will need to become familiar with the ever growing
array of online consumer homebuying tools, broaden their
online presence, and enhance their communication with
clients through the use of the latest Web trends such
as blogs and podcasts."> |
