Real Estate industry in the recent years has been on a boom in all its five sectors, viz. Residential, Commercial, Retail, Industrial as well as Investment. Though there have been reports and rumors of crashing, real estate market has been fairly steady in its growth and will be growing further in the second half of year 2007. This is evident through economic indicators like stable rates, falling dollar, changing demographic trends, rising stock market.
The number of immigrants coming to USA has been increasing rapidly. It is estimated that USA will witness a rise in the number of immigrants from approximately 9 million in 1990 to around 12 million by 2010. The demand for home ownership among this section in USA is very high and they will make up for almost 30% of the market share by 2010. If the predictions made by Harvard are to be considered, they will have a combine purchasing power of $1.5 trillion. Also they might account for around 55% - 60% of first time homebuyers.
Homebuyers are becoming more and more cautious of their purchase decisions. Thus the real estate agents and brokers need to adopt more of a financial planner approach. Being the traditional real estate agent is not going to work for long. Thus the real estate industry has to be more global, institutional and professional. They need to have complete knowledge and reduced response time.
Technology too has a substantial role to play in changing real estate trends. The market scenario has been changing continuously, with more and more people taking help of Internet technology and engaging in free flow of information about buying and selling of property. Thus the real estate industry is shifting from its traditional broker dependent model to a new social networking model. Around 77% of the homebuyers surf through net to buy their dream house. The realtors too have joined this trend by providing free information online through their websites.
There has been a change in real estate advertising trends too. Since consumers have hands on ample knowledge, their tolerance levels have decreased. They expect real estate agents to give them more than usual. If consumers are not given exactly what they want, they'll instantly switch to other options. This calls for realtors to brand themselves more strongly.
Lets talk about the most preferred places for homebuyers in USA. Online searches make it evident that city of Manhattan; San Francisco, Philadelphia, Los Angels, San Diego, and Washington are more looked for.
While most parts of United States of America are witnessing a boom in real estate sector, people in New Orleans, Louisiana and Mississippi are struggling to sell their home. Sign boards saying, prices reduced' and new prices' can be seen alongside Victorian homes. All this comes as after effects of hurricane Katrina. Prices of property insurance have soared high here. There is a shortage of upper class buyers like doctors and other professionals. Looks like a complete rehabilitation here is going to take some more time.
Martin Lukac represents RateEmpire.com Purchase Loan and Refinance Loan financial marketplace which connects consumers with multiple mortgage companies that compete for their business. For more information please visit Recent Trends in Real Estate