Homebuyers and Sellers: What Do They Need?

Dr. Jessica Lautz

Every year, the National Association of Realtors® publishes the Profile of Homebuyers and Sellers report and I recently had the opportunity to talk with Dr. Jessica Lautz, vice president of demographics and behavioral insights at NAR, about this report. Jessica researches demographic trends for both NAR members and housing consumers and issues, such as how housing preferences shift in an ever-changing marketplace, the consistent trends of consumers for the desire to own a home, consumers’ search to find a real estate agent and generational trends.

She reports some good news for Realtors®: for sale by owners, more commonly known as FSBOs, are at an all-time low.

Jessica noted, “Sellers don’t feel safe in selling their own home. They aren’t able to accurately price their homes and there’s not a way for them to market the property. They want a full-service agent. They want someone to be there at every step of the transaction.”

And buyers are reporting the same. “They also want an agent, because this is the biggest transaction of their lifetime,” she added.

And as for iBuyers? Jessica reports that less than 1% of those surveyed conducted the transaction in this manner.

To learn more about trends in the market, view this CEO Corner with Dr. Jessica Lautz.