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NAR Technology Survey reveals heavy tech investment by Realtors

Monday, December 18, 2006

The number of Realtors® with Web sites has increased 129 percent over the past five years, and many of the sites display property listings, according to a new survey by the National Association of Realtors®.

The 2006 Realtor® Technology Survey, conducted by NAR's Center for REALTOR® Technology, reveals that the Internet ranks third in generating leads, behind referrals and repeat clients, and ahead of community involvement. The survey also shows that there is a clear connection between technology spending and Internet-generated leads, and that getting leads from the Internet continues to grow.

Realtors have invested heavily in Internet technology and security, through Multiple Listing Systems and individually, in the past several years. For example, the survey showed that thus far in 2006, 56 percent of agents spent more than $1,000 apiece on technology and that 30 percent spent $2,000 or more. In addition, 16 percent of agents and 28 percent of brokers are now spending more than $1,000 annually on their Web sites. Realtors® with personal business Web sites--not including an area on a broker's site--was 71 percent in 2006, compared to 31 percent in 2002, showing a jump of 129 percent.

2006 San Mateo County Association of Realtors® (SAMCAR) President John Gieseker said, “We are definitely seeing more Internet buyers coming into the process. They are better educated and more informed. It changes the old-fashioned role of the Realtor as providing a buyer a list of homes and showing them; that’s no longer enough. Realtors now need to bring in much more to the process – knowledge of the area, negotiation skills, more information about inspections, properties and communities.”

Underlining the need for Realtors to continue to update their technology skills in order to improve their business, California Association of Realtors® (C.A.R.) Vice President Leslie Appleton-Young told SAMCAR brokers and managers at an October luncheon held at the San Mateo Marriott, they need to stress to their agents that a quick response time and good communication with clients are essential in order to be a successful Realtor these days.

Realtors they need to continue to become more Internet and technology savvy, check their e-mail quickly and regularly, put up a Web site, get gadgets like the Treo and Blackberry, in order to respond to clients quickly, Appleton-Young said, because seven out of 10 prospective home buyers use the Internet.
2006 NAR President Thomas M. Stevens said, “Realtors have invested huge amounts of resources in technology to make accurate information available on secure sites, thus bringing added value to the transaction. All this information is available to consumers, free of charge, 24 hours a day.”

The survey also showed that the amount of investment in Web sites has a direct relationship to the number of leads coming from the Internet. Thus, 40 percent of those who spent more than $5,000 on their Web site showed that more than 60 percent of their leads come from the Internet.
A recent C.A.R. survey showed most buyers respond to the first person who responds to their e-mail. Of internet buyers, 62 percent expect a faster response; 44 percent expect Realtors to respond to their e-mail in 30 minutes or less.

"The speed of the response time is important," Appleton-Young emphasized.

The survey shows this. In a surprising change from past surveys and findings, over half of the survey respondents indicated that it takes them less than two hours to respond to an Internet inquiry, and only 2 percent indicated that it took them more than a day to respond. That compares with a 2004 survey showing that only 27 percent of practitioners responded within eight hours to an online inquiry and 46 percent of inquiries received no responses.

The San Mateo County Association of REALTORS® (SAMCAR) is a professional trade organization representing over 3,800 REALTORS® and Affiliate members engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula. SAMCAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in San Mateo County.

The term "REALTOR®" is a registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is a member of the National Association of REALTORS® and who subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics.

Variations of this article have appeared in local area newspapers.

For further information, please contact Julie Ziemelis, Director of Public Affairs, e-mail , or phone (650) 696-8214.

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