Where Are the Buyers?

Does it Seem as Though Buyers of Real Estate Have Disappeared?  Where Are They?

As a real estate agent in today’s market, there are times when I wonder where the good times have gone.  Used to be a time when it was simple enough to get buyers and sellers to come to an agreement on a home transaction.  Of course, the good times still do exist.  Especially when we are successful in finding my buyers that “special home” or when my seller’s expectations have been met and exceeded. Now, it just feels as though the buyers have flown South for the winter. 

I know that this is not the case.  What has thrown the market into such tizzy is the sheer number of homes on the open market.  Here in the Ann Arbor area, year-to-date, we are experiencing a 12% decrease in the number of closings compared to the same time frame in 2005.

So, if there are 12% less closings, how do buyers learn about homes that are currently on the open market?  According the National Association of Realtors 85% of buyers utilized the services of an agent to find a home, and 80% also utilized the Internet to find homes.  55% of buyers utilized print media and 47% used open houses to find the home they purchased.

Can You Find Your Home Online?

Sellers, you need to be where the buyers are looking for their next home.  So, of course your home is listed with an agent and therefore in the local multiple listing service.  From there, it is a fair bet that your home is also residing on realtor.com. 

If you are an unrepresented seller looking for marketing tips or if you are a represented seller looking for an additional edge in marketing your property, here comes a great tip that many agents are not aware exists!

vFlyer is a great way to get your home exposed on Trulia, Google Base, Oodle, Edgeio, Vast and PropSmart.  Once a flyer is created and you’ve published it, they provide the HTML coding for you to post the flyer on craigslist and ebay.

Here’s an example of a vFlyer created for one of my listings.

With home buyers doing most of their research and house hunting online, it pays to get in front of them as many times as possible.  Best of all, vFlyer is free of charge!

[Originally posted on S.E. Michigan Real Estate]