February 13, 2005

It's time to rethink some assumptions about those 50 and above when it comes to real estate.

It was often believed that the typical aging homeowner was looking to move to an active adult community and downsize, but survey results show otherwise.

The ERA Real Estate survey of more than 1,500 people, age 50 and older, reveals

• Only 8 percent of those considering a move in the next five years indicated that they might consider purchasing a home in an active adult community.
• More than 61 percent consider purchasing a single-family home.
• The average senior lives in a house with three or more bedrooms and two or more baths.
• Only 11 percent felt their current home is too big.
• Nearly 25 percent of respondents thought their home was too small.
• Respondents cited better home or living conditions as the second most popular reason for buying a new residence.

Seniors also proved to be more savvy and demanding when it comes to technology. In fact, those considering moving in the next five years chose the Internet as the most popular home buying research method, up from the second most common choice mentioned in study during the previous year.

However, while mature consumers showed an increased propensity for the Internet to search for real estate information, nearly 92 percent said they were only somewhat to not at all likely to choose a real estate agent based on Internet research. This may be due in large part because the survey showed an existing relationship with a broker or real estate agent was still the second most popular method for researching real estate.

These survey results show that as more and more baby boomers turn 50, it is becoming harder to define the increasingly diverse mature consumer, said Brenda W. Casserly, president and COO, ERA Franchise Systems, Inc. Marketers today need to recognize the importance of understanding the many different concerns, wants and needs of these mature consumers to ensure they provide resources and services that are relevant and valuable to this growing market segment. At ERA Real Estate, we have set out to be the real estate company of choice for this powerful and under-served consumer.

Despite a historically strong real estate market that has seen continued price increases, more respondents expressed greater concern over

• prescription drug costs (62 percent),
• hospital-related costs (60 percent),
• income and other taxes (59 percent) and
• gas prices (56 percent)
• than they did over the price of houses (43 percent).

Other interesting findings revealed from the ERA survey of mature consumers included

• Respondents named one point of contact during the transaction process as the service they are most looking for from a real estate agent.
• Nearly three out of four respondents own their own home.
• Nine out of 10 have owned at least one home in their lifetime, while nearly two-thirds have owned two or more homes.
• The majority (53 percent) of respondents have lived in their current residence for 10 years.
• 57 percent of respondents would prefer to stay within 50 miles of their family during their next move, while 16 percent would consider a move of 1,000 miles or more.
• Nearly one quarter of respondents have children living with them or who are receiving financial support.
• Virtually all respondents (96 percent) own a personal computer.
• Three out of four respondents own a DVD player and a cell phone.
• Respondents ranked both in-depth property descriptions and photos or virtual tours as the most important factors when searching for real estate online.

Author Beth Bresnahan RisMedia

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