One of the main points we discussed in this months Facts and Figures call was the impact the housing inventory shortage is having on home prices. The combination of soaring demand and limited supply available has provided a wonderful environment for clients looking to sell their home – sellers get to enjoy fewer days on market and the ability to capture a greater percentage of the original listing price.

With that said, the steady rise of home prices means buyer dollars don't get the same amount of house today as they would have last year. For many millennial and budgeted home-buyers eager to achieve their American Dream, this has forced the option of remaining renters back to the forefront of conversation.

In our last podcast we shared an astonishing statistic based on the research of the National Association of Realtors, and I want to share it again with you here as it is more prevalent than ever:

• 90% of homebuyers are in the research and educational phase of the purchase cycle (6-12 months), and 10% are in the transaction phase, meaning they are buying in the immediate future;
• Very few real estate agents spend time capturing buyers and sellers in the research and educational phase;
• As a result, agents spend 98% of their time and money competing for that 10% of the market that's in the transaction phase;
• So, the true opportunity for business growth lies within cultivating prospective clients in the education and research phase…which is the path least explored.

The #1 opportunity in today's market that will differentiate the good real estate agents from the great ones will be whether or not they go fishing in this new pond.

Buyers typically rely on the real estate agent as their primary source of information – agents are the first person they reach out to when a decision is made to shop for a home.

As an agent, have you discussed your clients financial circumstances, educated them on the true dollar amounts required for downpayment or the various loan programs designed specifically with the cash-constrained buyer in mind? Do they know that there are programs that require as little as 3% down, or our program that requires 0% down? Most mortgage lenders have a suite of programs designed to allow these same buyers to pursue their American Dream in today's environment – but if they don't know it's possible because they haven't yet been educated as to their existence, they will likely elect to remain renters and postpone their home-ownership dreams until the market realigns with their misconceptions.

Our solution is one we've been working with our realtor partners on for years, and we are happy to share with you what has worked successfully for them – lead the charge in homeowner education. Host events for prospective home-buyers with the tools and resources they need for making an educated decision as to the factual nature of their situation. Become the source of information when those buyers in the research phase prepare to take the leap. Share articles on social media, pass along The Morning Shot or our Blog that cover these specific topics to your prospects. We are committed to helping you do this, so when you decide to take the next steps in becoming the leading source for your communities home-ownership needs, we are here to help design and host your next event and make sure you have everything you get that next transaction through education!

Thank you all for listening. We are committed to supporting you. To connect and work on getting your next event off the ground, send me an email at [email protected]

 I appreciate you joining me today, hopefully you can find a way to apply your shot into today, until tomorrow, have a better day today than yesterday.

 

The views of this blog, "Your Morning Shot" podcast, and on this site in general are solely those of the authors, Matt Weaver (NMLS-175651) and Zack Lewis, and do not express the views or opinions of Finance of America Mortgage.