The Internet provides us with so much confidence and such a strong belief in our abilities that it has become the digital version of liquid courage. Can I change the oil in my car, you think to yourself. Well, you’ve never done it before, and you have no technical automotive training, but what you do have is the Internet. How hard can it be? But a giant oil stain on the driveway and a pair of ruined pants later, you realize you probably should have just taken it to a professional. The Internet has created more fake mechanics, chefs, and philosophers than ever before. But is the title of real estate agent something else you can add to that list?
According to a recent survey of 1,000 potential homebuyers from online brokerage firm Owners.com, 69 percent of respondents gave themselves an “A” or a “B” grade when it comes to understanding the homebuying process, HousingWire reports. Is this false confidence, or have people actually become more knowledgeable about the homebuying process than in the past? It's hard to tell, but the Internet seems to have played a large role in this apparent better understanding of the process as 73 percent of respondents said they would use online sites to search for properties, 53 percent said they would book home tours online, 43 percent said they would consider online financing products, and 27 percent said they would make a purchase offer online.
What these numbers mean is that, thanks to the Internet, buyers feel there are more aspects of the homebuying process they can handle themselves in an effort to save time and money. This trend is not only expected to continue, but to grow in the future.
Additionally, homebuyers are also more confident in the 2016 homebuying environment as a whole, as 80 percent of respondents said they believed 2016 would be as good or better for purchasing a home than it was five years ago.
The top reasons for wanting to purchase a new home were upgrading (33 percent), investing in real estate (25 percent), and relocating to a new area (24 percent).
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