NAR Study Shows Fragmentation of Market

A recent study from the National Association of Realtors shows the rising prominence of the Internet in the search for homes by consumers. But it also shows the compexity and fragmentation of the market.

The study was based on eight-page questionnaire mailed to 133,000 home buyers and sellers in August 2008. The population consisted of people who had bought or sold homes in the past year.

Marketing Charts offers a considerable amount of detail about the study. Here are the highlights . . .

Resources used in searching for a home:

• 87% used the Internet
• 85% used a real estate agent
• 62% yard signs
• 48% attended open houses
• 47% looked at print or newspaper ads

Where did they first learn about home they bought?

• 34% of buyers said a real estate agent
• 32% the Internet
• 15% from yard signs
• 7% from a friend, neighbor or relative
• 7% home builders
• 3% a print or newspaper ad
• 2% directly from the seller
• 1% a home book or magazine

Eighty-seven percent of home buyers who used the Internet to search for a home purchased through a real estate agent, in contrast with 72 percent of non-Internet users who were more likely to purchase directly from a builder or from an owner they already knew in a private transaction.

Most popular Internet sources among buyers:

• Local metropolitan multiple listing service Web sites, 60%
• Realtor.com, 48%
• Real estate company sites, 46%
• Real estate agent Web sites, 43%
• for-sale-by-owner sites, 19%
• Local newspaper sites, 11%
• Other categories were smaller

Source: MarketingCharts/NAR (8/08)

What this survey shows is that consumers use many different sources of information in their home-buying process. This is a microscosm of media and the general consumer marketplace.

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Related: Zillow released its third quarter real estate market report.