Inventory Shortage and Rising Prices Intensify Buyer Frustration in Redfin Real-Time Homebuyer Survey

SEATTLE, Feb. 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Redfin (www.redfin.com), a technology-powered real estate broker, today released its latest survey of homebuyers. Data was collected from February 22 to February 25, capturing sentiment of 1,119 active homebuyers across 19 U.S. markets who had toured a home with a Redfin agent since November 29, 2012. The Redfin Real-Time Homebuyer Survey is a companion to the quarterly Home-Seller Survey and Agent Survey.

Results Snapshot:

• 79% of homebuyers believe that home prices will increase in their neighborhood in the next 12 months, up from 71% last quarter;
• 22% believe that home prices will rise "a lot" this year, more than doubling the percentage of homebuyers who felt that way last quarter;
• 40% of respondents believe now is a good time to buy a home, down from 48% last quarter;
• 48% believe now is a good time to sell a home, up from just 27% last quarter;
• 66% listed low inventory as a top concern, up from 59% in the fourth quarter;
• 40% indicated that rising home prices are their main concern, up from 33% last quarter; and
• 58% cited low interest rates as their top reason to buy now, up just one percentage point from last quarter.

So far in 2013, Redfin has seen demand surge and inventory shrink, a very frustrating combination for homebuyers looking to buy while interest rates are still low and before home prices rise much more. Most homebuyers are facing fierce competition, with many homes receiving dozens of offers at once. Redfin agents advise clients to be prepared before they enter the market by lining up financing in advance and understanding the absolute highest price they can afford before entering a bidding war where emotions are likely to take over.

To view the Redfin Real-Time Homebuyer Survey, including data and charts, click here. Redfin can also segment data by market and other customer demographics by request.

About the Report
From February 22 through 25, 2013, we surveyed 1,119 active homebuyers who had toured a home with a Redfin agent since November 29, 2012. Respondents came from across 19 metropolitan markets in the U.S.: Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, New York, Orange County, Phoenix, Portland, Riverside / San Bernardino, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington DC.

About Redfin
Redfin (www.redfin.com) is a technology-powered real estate broker that represents people buying and selling homes. Founded and run by technologists, Redfin has a team of experienced, full-service real estate agents who are advocates, not sales-people, earning customer-satisfaction bonuses, not commissions. Redfin's online tools feature all the broker-listed homes for sale, as well as for-sale-by-owner properties that don't pay brokers a commission. The company serves 21 U.S. markets and has closed more than $8 billion in home sales. In 2012, Redfin was named one of The DIGITAL 100: World's Most Valuable Private Tech Companies by Business Insider. Follow us on blog.redfin.com, on Twitter @redfin, and Facebook.com/Redfin.

SOURCE Redfin Corporation