Wednesday, June 10, 2009

WHAT HOME BUYERS WANT TODAY

Each year there are numerous regional and national surveys that reveal the latest trends in what buyers and sellers want and expect in a real estate transaction. The latest of these surveys has just been released by CAR - the findings are summarized below:

Buyers...

- Who use the Internet want agents to respond faster (31% expect instant responses).
- Want to preview more homes before writing an offer (12.7% in 2008 compared to 9.3% in 2007).
- Are taking longer to make a decision (8.3 weeks in 2008 compared to 5.2 weeks in 2007).

And what does this net the agent? Significant declines in satisfaction ratings.

Buyers who said their agent "surpassed expectations" was a huge drop: from 91% in 2007 to only 39% in 2008. While buyers may not be as satisfied, this hasn't altered the fact that 88% of buyers still used an agent last year - exactly the same percentage as 2007.

However, satisfaction levels seems to be less about the agent and more with factors outside the agent's control. The economy has slowed, and this has made the process of looking for a home one filled with caution and delibertion for many buyers.

The two biggest factors motivating people to buy right now are:

- declining home prices
- low
mortgage rates

Buyers are online...

Not only are buyers actually working with an agent longer, they are taking more time online to research homes before contacting an agent. Buyers averaged 8.2 weeks of researching homes before contacting an agent in 2008, versus 7.6 weeks in 2007.

Buyers are looking for the right agent...

Along with viewing more homes, buyers are also interviewing more agents. This is actually good news for the good agents. It means that buyers recognize that agents bring more value than ever to the table and they are taking more time to find the right agent. The survey shows 64% interviewed two or more agents in 2008, compared to 53% in 2007.

What are they looking for in an agent?

- 44% hire the most responsive agent
- 22% hire the most qualified agent
- 19% hire the most aggressive agent
- 9% hire the most knowledgeable agent
- 5% hire the quickest or first agent


Agent satisfaction...

There were two things that made the biggest impact on whether a buyer was satisfied with his agent:

- how quick they were to respond
- how aggressively they felt the agent negotiated on their behalf


Kinds of info buyers want...

We all know that the bulk of people are using the Internet in the real estate process, but what features/functionality do they want?

87% - multiple photos and virtual tours. One again, these two top the list among Internet shoppers, listing them both as "very or extremely important"
80% - maps/directions
74% - agent contact options

One thing buyers would change...

In closing, here are things buyers said they wish they could change about their online home buying experience:

- 53% want a better understanding of where the market is heading
- 19% want their transaction to close on time
- 17% wanted better negotiation skills from their agent
- 8% hoped for a better response time from the selling agent
- 2% said less paperwork
- 1% said a better understanding of interest rate trends


It is no surprise that buyers want more from their agents and want them to respond faster, be more knowledgeable, more accessible, and negotiate harder than ever on their behalf.

The days of the "part-time agent" are fading fast.

Consumers expect (and demand) professionalism from their agents like never before, which is good news for those who are committed to real estate as a 100% full-time vocation.