Are you considering buying a new home? Or your a new owner and have questions about homeownership? According to a new survey, many other homeowners consider real estate professionals, like ours at RE/MAX Paradise, a top resource for information.
A study by NeighborWorks America showed that real estate professionals ranked highest compared to five other sources listed in the survey: friends, family and co-workers (62 percent very or somewhat likely to consult them), web search (59 percent), mortgage lenders (57 percent), housing counselors (31 percent) and social media (24 percent).
“It’s clear from our survey that consumers see real estate professionals as a primary resource for homeownership information, so their role is very important,” says Marietta Rodriguez, vice president of homeownership and lending at NeighborWorks America.
NeighborWorks surveyed 1,000 American adults for their survey, which they also conducted for the last two years. NeighborWorks is an organization comprised of more than 240 local development groups working to increase affordable housing and sustainable homeownership.
Rodriguez believes that better relationships between nonprofits and homeowners would improve chains of communication regarding homeownership.
“Through partnerships with the organizations and professionals that consumers use to gather information, NeighborWorks can better assist consumers who want to become successful homeowners,” she says. “That should trigger the establishment of strong partnerships with real estate professionals. Together they can give consumers the best information about the process, from mortgage products and credit education to the purchase process, too.”
Some of the survey questions revealed that those surveyed believe better homebuyer education would energize the real estate market further.
“These findings reveal that Americans are not receiving adequate information about the home buying process,” says NeighborWorks CEO Paul Weech. “It’s understandable that Americans looking to purchase their first home are intimidated by obstacles such as student debt, lack of a downpayment and weak credit, so it’s critical that first-time homebuyers have access to information and programs such as downpayment assistance and affordable loans.”
Check out the whole press release here.
RE/MAX Paradise is happy to be the informant you need about homeownership. Don’t hesitate to contact us today!