Most popular time to search for homes online

Market Trend

Most popular time to search for homes online

As the hot market makes reading real estate listings online a common activity for households, a new study shows house hunters tend to be more active at certain times of the day and week.

The most popular time of the week to search for homes: Tuesday at 8:00 p.m., according to a recent study of visitor activity with real estate listings on one of the biggest real estate aggregators’ website. This time is after regular work hours, post-dinner, pre-bedtime, smack dab in the middle of the workweek. The least active time for real estate listing searches is Friday evenings.

Studies are also offering insights on timing in other aspects of real estate, such as the optimal time to sell. A separate study released recently by realtor.com showed the busiest week for real estate is quickly approaching.

Home sellers who list during the week of April 10-16 will be able to take advantage of the spring buying season’s anticipated strong demand, high asking prices, quick home sales, and lowered competition from other sellers, according to realtor.com’s fourth annual Best Time to Sell Report.

Those who list that week will likely get a head start on the competition. Plus, sellers who list from April 10-16 could secure asking prices that are nearly 11 percent higher, or $39,000 more, when compared to the start of this year, according to NAR’s website research.


Real Estate Professionals Spending More on Photos and Videos



A new study reveals geographic differences in the amount of money that real estate professionals spent before the pandemic on capturing their listings and the amount they’re willing to spend now. As more buyers look online first or even show more willingness to buy sight unseen, real estate pros are prioritizing good imagery on their listings.

In certain regions of the country, real estate agents are putting even more emphasis on photography. For example, Realtors in the West, Northeast, and Midwest tend to spend more for real estate listing photography services now than they did at the start of the pandemic, according to a new study from a company that provides photography, 3D virtual tours, aerial photography, and other visual services.

Real estate agents in the West have increased their use of photography services by nearly nine percent, in the Northwest by 7.5 percent, and in the Midwest by 5.6 percent.

On the other hand, real estate professionals in the Southwest and Southeast tended to spend more or modestly less for real estate listing photography services ever since the pandemic began, according to the study.

The study analyzed more than 43,000 real estate photography assignments from 2017 to 2021 across five major regions of the country (Midwest, Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, and West).

Nationally, the average real estate listing photography services order was up and averages about $229 per order, according to the study. Real estate pros in the West tended to spend the most for real estate listing photography services, averaging $279 per order.

Professional real estate listing photography orders by real estate agents clearly remained a vital marketing investment in many of the hottest markets during the pandemic. The study shows that during a time when homes were flying off the shelves, and multiple offers hit a new high, agents still understood the power of visual images for their real estate marketing. The old saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words,” appears to be as true as ever, at least in the real estate business.”