Opportunistic Buyers Intend to Use a Realtor Most consumers reco…
This summer, Hanley Wood Market Intelligence worked with BDX, a new-home digital marketing company owned by a consortium of 32 of the largest home builders in the U.S., and Boston-based consumer research firm Chadwick Martin Bailey to conduct research into home-shoppers’ preference for new construction. The findings inform a new advertising campaign to drive greater awareness about new homes. BDX launched the “Buy New” campaign digitally in October and will implement a multimillion dollar, integrated campaign in the first quarter of 2013 to capitalize on the full home buying season.
Research results affirmed wide-held beliefs, but a few data points challenge conventional wisdom. Today, several triggers rank much higher than life events as reasons for buying a new home: home prices, interest rates, and being “tired of current house.”
But two-thirds of respondents were unsure about when they will purchase, and the largest group of respondents expected to take nine or more months. This result indicates that while today’s buyers sense great opportunity, they are not in a hurry.
A whopping 84 percent of shoppers indicated they were using or intended to use a Realtor. This is a wake-up call for builders to start re-evaluating their Realtor programs. Home shoppers said Realtors add value, such as helping with the contract process, finding homes that meet the buyer’s specifications, and arranging appointments.
