by Louis Cammarosano

Based on responses from over 500 real estate agents and brokers nationwide, referrals ranked as the number one marketing preference among real estate professionals for acquiring new clients, with an overall score of 8.95 (out of 10) for effectiveness. Referrals also ranked number one in the 2011 and 2010 surveys.

Leads from brokers (scored a 5.6) and Events (5.26) ranked second and third, respectively, as most effective marketing strategies, which remained unchanged from 2011.
Online lead generation services (5.19) ranked fourth, jumping four positions from the 2011 survey. Email Campaigns (4.92) and Featured Listings (4.91) swapped positions from the 2011 survey and came in fifth and sixth, respectively.

Postcards and Mailers (4.9) were bumped down from sixth in the 2011 survey to seventh. However, it scored half a point higher in 2012. Craigslist (4.3) and Youtube (4.1) ranked eighth and ninth, respectively. Youtube scored 0.6 points higher than in 2011, helping it jump three spots.

In the 2011 survey, Social Media sites like Facebook and Twitter were grouped into one category. In 2012, each site stood on its own. Overall in 2011, Social Media scored a 3.8. In 2012, Facebook (4.0) ranked 10th, Google+ (3.7) ranked 12th, LinkedIn (3.61) ranked 14th and Twitter (3.43) ranked 19th. The average of these scores is 3.69.

Blogging (3.91) ranked 11th in 2012. This represents a 0.62 increase and a jump of two spots from 2011.

“Despite the hype of social media as an effective marketing outlet, real estate professionals once again voted referrals as the most effective and most preferred form of marketing,” said Louis Cammarosano, General Manager of HomeGain. “Also coming in ahead of social media were in person events, like open houses, mailing of post cards and online lead generation services.”

Top Effective Marketing Strategies for Real Estate Professionals in 2012:

(Cumulative Averages, 1=least likely to use/10=most likely to use)

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Home sellers are more than twice as likely to sell their homes using a REALTOR® than going FSBO. Seventy-three percent of homeowners using a HomeGain agent had their homes sold vs. 62 percent who used a non-HomeGain agent and vs. 30 percent who went FSBO.

by Louis Cammarosano

HomeGain surveyed over 400 homeowners asking whether they used a REALTOR® to sell their home or whether they attempted to sell it themselves. Seventy-nine percent said they used a REALTOR® to sell their home and 21 percent said they tried to sell their home on their own.

Sixty-six percent of home owners that used a REALTOR® to sell their home were successful vs. 30 percent of FSBO’s, reflecting a 120 percent higher closing rate for those home sellers using a REALTOR®.

Eighty-five percent of homeowners that used a REALTOR® to try and sell their home said they would use a REALTOR® again for their real estate needs.

Eighty-nine percent of home owners who sold their home using a REALTOR® said they would use a REALTOR® again.

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Earlier this week, HomeGain, one of the first companies to provide free instant home valuations online, announced the results of its 2012 National Home Ownership Satisfaction Survey. Homeowners were asked whether they were satisfied with owning a home and whether price appreciation or depreciation was a factor. Over 1,400 home owners from across the nation were surveyed. The complete 2012 national results were published on this blog.

Earlier this week we released the results of the California home ownership satisfaction survey.

Today we are releasing the Florida home ownership satisfaction survey results. In the coming days, we will also announce the results from Illinois, New York and Texas.

The complete Florida results can be found below. Click on a question to jump to the results:

1. Overall, are you satisfied with home ownership?
2. When did you purchase your home?
3. What was the value of your home when you purchased it?
4. What type of home did you purchase?
5. What is your age?

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Earlier this week, HomeGain, one of the first companies to provide free instant home valuations online, announced the results of its 2012 National Home Ownership Satisfaction Survey. Homeowners were asked whether they were satisfied with owning a home and whether price appreciation or depreciation was a factor. Over 1,400 home owners from across the nation were surveyed. The complete 2012 national results were published on this blog.

Today we are releasing the California home ownership satisfaction survey results. In the coming days, we will also announce the results from Florida, Illinois, New York and Texas.

The complete California results can be found below. Click on a question to jump to the results:

1. Overall, are you satisfied with home ownership?
2. When did you purchase your home?
3. What was the value of your home when you purchased it?
4. What type of home did you purchase?
5. What is your age?

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HomeGain, one of the first companies to provide free instant home valuations online, announced the results of its 2012 Home Ownership Satisfaction Survey. Homeowners were asked whether they were satisfied with owning a home and whether price appreciation or depreciation was a factor. Over 1,400 home owners from across the nation were surveyed.

Overall, 72 percent of surveyed homeowners indicated that they were satisfied with owning a home and 28% said they were dissatisfied. When asked if price appreciation was the primary reason for their satisfaction, only 24 percent said yes. Seventy-six percent listed other reasons for being satisfied. The most popular responses were pride of ownership, and freedom to control what type of home improvements and upgrades go into their homes.

Sixty-three percent of homeowners who indicated they were unsatisfied with home ownership said that price depreciation was the primary reason. Of the 37 percent who listed other reasons for being unsatisfied, the most cited responses were the costs of home ownership, including property taxes, homeowner association fees, and maintenance and repairs.

“The HomeGain 2012 National Home Ownership Satisfaction survey shows in spite of declines in the values of homes nationwide, satisfaction among home owners remains high at 72 percent, with nearly 3 of 4 home owners satisfied with home ownership.” said Louis Cammarosano, General Manager of HomeGain. “Of the 28 percent of surveyed homeowners who indicated they were unsatisfied, 63 percent cited price depreciation as the primary reason.”

On a regional basis, the highest percentage of homeowner satisfaction was in the Northeast, with a 77 percent satisfaction rate. The Southeast ranked second with 73 percent, followed by the West with 71 percent, and the Midwest with 68 percent.

The survey asked when homes were purchased, the purchase prices of the homes, the type of homes purchased (short sale, foreclosure, new or existing), and the age groups of the homeowners.

Overall, homeowners who purchased their homes between 3-8 years ago were the least satisfied. Homeowners who purchased their home within the last three years or more than 8 years ago, were the most satisfied.

Homeowners who paid less than $75,000 for their home were the most satisfied, with a 77 percent satisfaction rate. Homeowners who purchased a home for more than $800,000 were the least satisfied, with a 69 percent satisfaction rate.

Those purchasing foreclosed homes or homes in a short sale had the highest home ownership satisfaction rates at 79 percent and 83 percent, respectively. Those who purchased new or existing homes had lower satisfaction rates at 73 percent and 71 percent, respectively. Sixty-seven percent of homeowners who purchased a new home, and 64 percent of homeowners who purchased an existing home, indicated that price depreciation was the primary reason for being unsatisfied.

Homeowners ages 18-25 were the least satisfied with home ownership, with a 45 percent satisfaction rate. This is the only age group to have a satisfaction rate below 50 percent. Homeowners ages 55-65 were the most satisfied with home ownership, with a 76 percent satisfaction rate.

The complete national results can be found below. Click on a question to jump to that question’s results:

1. Overall, are you satisfied with home ownership?
2. When did you purchase your home?
3. What was the value of your home when you purchased it?
4. What type of home did you purchase?
5. What is your age?

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Forty-three percent of surveyed real estate professionals nationwide expect home values to stay the same over the next six months; Seventy percent disapprove of Obama’s performance as President; Mitt Romney edges out Barack Obama

HomeGain, one of the first companies to provide free instant home valuations online, announced the results of its nationwide fourth quarter 2011 home values survey. Over 400 real estate agents and brokers and over 2,000 homeowners were surveyed. We also released the regional results of the fourth quarter 2011 HomeGain home values survey.

Most real estate professionals and homeowners continue to expect home values to stay the same or decrease through the end of the year. Forty-three percent of agents and brokers and 48 percent of homeowners think that home values will stay the same over the next six months.

Forty-two percent of real estate agents and brokers and 37 percent of homeowners think that home values will decrease in the coming six months.

Fifteen percent of real estate professionals expect home values to increase in the next six months, up four percent from last quarter. Fifteen percent of homeowners also expect home values to increase in the next six months, up three percent from last quarter.

In the third quarter 2011 HomeGain National Home Values Survey, forty-seven percent of agents and brokers and 45 percent of homeowners thought that home values would decrease over the next six months.

According to surveyed agents and brokers, 76 percent of homeowners believe their homes are worth more than the recommended agent listing price. In contrast, 68 percent of home buyers believe homes are overpriced.

“Homeowners and real estate professionals appear to be in sync regarding the direction of home prices. Home buyers and sellers, however, continue to remain apart as to home valuations with the vast majority of homeowners thinking their homes are worth more than their agents and the market are telling them,” said Louis Cammarosano, General Manager of HomeGain.

Fifty-two percent of agents and brokers surveyed indicated that they “strongly disapproved” and 18 percent “somewhat disapproved” of Barack Obama’s performance as President, earning him a 70 percent disapproval rating, an increase of one percent in the disapproval rating of agents and brokers surveyed in the fourth quarter last year. Last quarter the President had a 72 percent disapproval rating among agents and brokers.

Forty-four percent of homeowners “strongly disapproved” and 16 percent “somewhat disapproved” of the President’s performance, earning him a 60 percent disapproval rating. The President had a 63 percent disapproval rating last quarter among surveyed homeowners with 47 percent “strongly disapproving”. The Rasmussen Daily Presidential Approval Index taken during the same period as the HomeGain Fourth Quarter 2011 Home Values Survey indicated that the President’s average disapproval rating was 52 percent with an average of 40 percent “strongly disapproving” of his performance.

Below are the top states where real estate professionals and home owners think home prices will rise and fall over the next six months.

Top 10 States Where Real Estate Agents and Homeowners Think Home Prices Will Go Up in the Next Six Months:

Top 10 States Where Real Estate Agents and Homeowners Think Home Prices Will Go Down In the Next Six Months:

Top 10 States Where Real Estate Agents and Homeowners Approve of Barack Obama’s Performance as President:

Top 10 States Where Real Estate Agents and Homeowners Disapprove of Barack Obama’s Performance as President:

The survey was conducted from November 9 – November 20, 2011.

View all prior HomeGain national and state home prices surveys.

The fourth quarter 2011 regional results are available by clicking here.

Set forth below are the results of the third quarter 2011 and 2011 national home prices survey as well as the results of the fourth quarter 2010 survey. Also set forth below for selected questions is the national home owner response data for the fourth quarter of 2011. Click on each question to see complete results:

Questions and National Results:

1. Have home prices increased, decreased or stayed the same in the last year?
2. On average, what do homeowners believe that their home is worth?
3. How do buyers feel that homes for sale are priced?
4. What is the average difference in price between what sellers believe their home to be worth and the amount at which the home gets listed?
5. What is the average difference in price between what a home is listed at and what a home sells for?
6. In the next six months, will the values of homes in your market increase, decrease or stay the same?
7. What percentage of homes for sale are foreclosures in your area?
8. What is the average home price in your area?
9. What percentage of your clients are first-time buyers?
10. How do you think Barack Obama is performing in his role as President?
11. If the Presidential election were held today, who would you vote for?

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