47 Percent Of Home Buyers Plan To Use A Real Estate Agent But Do Not Have One Yet

CHICAGO, April 30, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- HomeFinder.com, a leading online real estate search site, recently released the results of a March 2012 consumer survey of nearly 400 HomeFinder.com users. One of the most significant findings is that almost one out of every two respondents indicated that they are in the market for a home, but do not yet have a real estate agent.

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These numbers solidify that consumers are often using HomeFinder.com to do the initial research and home searching before reaching out to an agent for the instruction and assistance needed to purchase a home. 63 percent of homebuyers surveyed expect real estate agents to educate them on the buying process, and 47 percent also expect real estate agents to provide guidance on the value of the house.

"This survey data underlines what we have known for some time: buyers are pre-searching for homes, neighborhoods, and crime rates on HomeFinder.com prior to involving an agent," says CEO Doug Breaker. "Why this is so significant to agents is that they have the opportunity, like never before, to reach these buyers by being proactive in their marketing efforts online and specifically on HomeFinder.com."

79 percent of the respondents indicated that the ability to search HomeFinder.com for property details, including taxes and sales history, is very important; 65 percent indicated having the ability to view how properties compare to similar properties in the same neighborhood is very important. Breaker added, "Through our enhanced listings and Single Property Website products, real estate agents and brokers can offer this criteria to potential new clients in real time during their search."

While consumers are diligent about their research and know what kind of property and neighborhood information they want, they still need a real estate agent to progress in the buying process.  Real estate agents and brokers can visit http://www.homefinder.com/agents-and-brokers/ for further information on available digital marketing solutions for their business.

For full details and statistics on the survey, please visit our blog post.

About HomeFinder.comHomeFinder.com is a leading online real estate search site and provider of strategic digital marketing solutions. 3.4 million visitors each month gain access to almost 4 million online real estate listings. The 20,000 real estate agents who comprise the HomeFinder.com advertising network utilize a unique suite of product offerings, including a patent pending Single Property Website. Through a national affiliate network of 375 online newspaper partners, HomeFinder.com is the only real estate search site to also provide relevant listing content to homebuyers through local online newspaper portals.

HomeFinder.com is owned jointly by three leading media companies, Gannett Co. Inc. (NYSE: GCI), The McClatchy Co. (NYSE: MNI) and Tribune Co., and is an affiliated company of Classified Ventures, LLC, which owns and operates three leading online businesses: Apartments.com, Cars.com and HomeGain.com.

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