Rebound. Now that's a word many of us in and around the real estate industry have been waiting to hear. Well, it's here and it's real. In 2009 NAR reports there were about 300,000 more resales than in the previous year and the forecast for 2010 is for sales to increase again, this time by about 500,000 homes. And sales of brand new homes will kick in too, rebounding from 377,000 homes in 2009 to 529,000 in 2010. Prices, which contracted in 2009, will stabilize and maybe increase slightly in 2010.
From a marketing point of view, there is another type of rebound forecast for 2010. Borrell Associates, Inc. is projecting that media spend will increase by 2.7% to $8B after contracting 19% in 2009. Even more interesting, is the mix of the media spend. It is not what you might expect. Online or Internet spend is expected to drop again in 201o as it did last year. Even with this drop, it's important to note that the Internet has replaced the newspaper in terms of dominate share of spend.
But here is the part of the forecast I personally find most interesting. The spend on printed color catalogs/home magazines and the like, are projected to increase over 60% in 2010. Wow! Why? The real estate business remains a hyper local one. The average move in 2009 from previous home to new home was 12 miles. Local exposure matters and catalogs like The Real Estate Book allow the Agent or Broker to communicate market presence and dominance in a way the Internet doesn't. Home sellers notice and so do those who are thinking about listing their home soon.
An integrated or multi channel approach to real estate marketing is, in my opinion, the way to go. I'll be happy to provide all the research I have. Just ask.
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