Google real estate searches have spiked 253 percent in the last four years, according to a joint study by NAR and Google.

Real estate-related searches on Google have catapulted 253 percent since 2008, according to a joint study by Google and the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

In addition, the report, titled The Digital House Hunt: Consumer and Market Trends in Real Estate, uncovered a number of interesting details on how today’s homebuyers interact with the Internet.

Google Searches on Real Estate Terms

Google and NAR both found that the prospective homebuyer’s aims played a very strong role in his or her search terms:

• First-time homebuyers, for instance, most frequently searched for “FHA loan,” “FHA,” “home grants,” “home loan,” and “home buyer assistance,” which can only make sense when four of 10 first-time homebuyers financed their home purchases with FHA mortgages in 2012.
• At the state level, Delaware, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Dakota, and Wyoming generated the most online queries from first-time homebuyers.
• For homebuyers looking for retirement residences, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oregon, Virginia, and Washington generated the most interest, while for vacation properties, Florida, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, and South Dakota were tops.
• In terms of amenities, the numbers of bedrooms/bathrooms, square footage, garages, HVAC systems and swimming pools accounted for 70 percent of all the searched features on Realtor.com.
• And finally, for those prospective homebuyers using a mobile device, 48 percent did so to find directions to a home for sale, while 45 percent went mobile to request more info about a home or service.

We should point out, though Google searches are extremely prevalent, the likelihood of appearing on the first pages of any of the aforementioned terms is unlikely; as we’ve covered before, the more specific the search terms, the better your chances are of getting discovered.

Patrick Grandinetti – Online Technologies “Driving Offline Behaviors”

Patrick Grandinetti, the head of real estate at Google, said that the widespread usage of the Internet in today’s commerce has presented new, targeted marketing opportunities for real estaet professionals.

“With 90 percent of homebuyers searching online during their homebuying process, the real estate industry is smart to target these people where they look for and consume information – for example, through paid search, relevant websites, video environments and mobile applications,” he said.

Ian Schwartz, an agent with Coldwell Banker in Lincoln Park, said the increase in real estate-related Internet activity has changed the way that he interacts with his clients.

“It’s no longer about finding properties,” he said. “I think more and more it comes down to service.”

Previously, Schwartz said, agents were privy to exclusive information about what homes were for sale and for what price; with the advent of IDX feeds, though, along with syndication sites, chances are that your clients will know a good deal about what homes are for sale and at what price, and Schwartz said it then becomes the agent’s responsibility to offer a superior service to the client, one built upon keen analysis and in-depth discussion.