Myths: The Earth Is Flat and Newspapers Sell Houses

It is amazing how masses of people can believe something that is absolutely untrue. The greatest example of this is that at one time the vast majority of people believed the world to be flat. Today, we want to debunk another commonly held belief – that newspapers sell houses. Somehow this notion gained believability even though the facts consistently prove it to not be true.

When you are selling your house, you should know what methods perspective purchasers use to find the home of their dreams. That would enable you to develop the best marketing strategy to attract a buyer.

Google recently teamed with the National Association of Realtors (NAR) on a new report, The Digital House Hunt: Consumer and Market Trends in Real Estate.

Let’s look at the actual search habits of today’s buyers revealed by the report:

§ 90% of buyers now begin their search for a home online

§ Real estate related searches on Google.com have grown 253% over the past 4 years

Of the 90% who use the internet, they gain information from these sources (with percentages):

§ The internet – 100%

§ A real estate agent – 89%

§ A yard sign – 53%

§ An open house – 46%

§ Print newspaper – 28%

If you want to develop a great marketing strategy giving your house maximum exposure, forget newspapers. Less than 30% of buyers will ever see your home. Instead, look toward the internet and a real estate agent.

Where on the internet should you advertise your home?

The buyer is attracted to the type of sites that have the greatest number of listings. These sites are normally generated by the real estate industry. You should make sure your home is on as many of these sites as possible. That will give you the best chance of attracting your buyer.

Bottom Line

Print media never was a great way to market a house for sale and its effectiveness is diminishing each year. Give me a call at (910) 617-7654 to discuss how we can put together an internet marketing plan for your home!

Vacation Home Sales Rise in 2012

The American desire to own a second home as a vacation home is alive and well!

The National Association of Realtors analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data shows there are 7.9 million vacation homes in the U.S. Their 2013 Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey shows vacation home sales improved in 2012.

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said favorable conditions are driving second-home sales:

“We had a strong stock market recovery, which helps more people in the prime ages for buying vacation homes. Attractively priced recreational property is also a big draw.”

Here are the key findings from the report:

Raw Numbers

§ Vacation-Home sales rose 10.1 percent to 553,000 from 502,000 in 2011

§ Sales accounted for 11% of all transactions last year, unchanged from 2011

§ The median price was $150,000, compared with $121,300 in 2011, reflecting a greater number of more expensive recreational property sales in 2012

§ 35% of vacation homes purchased in 2012 were distressed homes

Buyer Profile

§ The typical vacation-home buyer was 47 years old

§ The median household income was $92,100

§ Buyers plan to own their recreational property for a median of 10 years

§ 29% said they were likely to purchase another vacation home within two years

§ 78% of all second-home buyers said it was a good time to buy (compared with 68% of primary residence buyers)

Reasons for Purchasing

Lifestyle factors remain the primary motivation for vacation-home buyers:

§ 80% want to use the property for vacations or as a family retreat

§ 27% plan to use it as a primary residence in the future

§ 23% plan to rent to others

§ 23% wanted to diversify their investments or saw a good investment opportunity

Location

§ 45% of vacation homes purchased last year were in the South

§ 25% in the West

§ 17% in the Northeast

§ 12% in the Midwest

The vacation home buyer purchased a property that was a median distance of 435 miles from their primary residence

§ 34% were within 100 miles

§ 46% were more than 500 miles

Financing

§ 46% of vacation-home buyers paid cash in 2012

The median down payment was 27%, the same as in 2011

Please give me a call or send me an email with any questions you may have about our market here in the Wilmington and Beach areas.
Thanks!
Joyce Barnwell

Demand for Real Estate is Much Stronger This Year

Demand for Real Estate is Much Stronger This Year

We are going to take a look at three reasons that now is the time to list your home if you are wanting to sell.  Today is part 1.  Parts 2 and 3 will be posted tomorrow and Thursday.

When selling anything, owners can only hope there is a strong demand for that which they are selling. The great news for today’s home sellers is that the current housing market is experiencing a stronger demand than we have seen in some time.

The  spring housing market of 2013 is projected to be one of the best in years.

Home Sales

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports monthly on both pending sales (houses going into contract) and existing home sales (actual closed sales).

In the first quarter of 2013, pending sales have consistently outperformed the numbers reported in 2012. Contract activity has been above year-ago levels for the past 22 months. Before this year, the last time the index showed a higher reading was in April 2010, shortly before the deadline for the home buyer tax credit.

NAR also revealed that closed home sales have been above year-ago levels for 20 consecutive months and sales are at the highest level since the tax credit period of 2009-2010.

Impact on Sellers

This increase in demand has created bidding wars for properly priced homes across the country. This has resulted in two favorable changes for home sellers:

1.      They are receiving offers closer to (if not greater than) the list price.

2.      The average days it takes to sell a home has dropped by over 20% from last year.

If you are thinking about selling your home, don’t miss out on the strong demand that exists in the current spring market.