Home Buyers Spend 124 Hours, on Average, to Find a Home

According to a new survey released by real estate site Zolo, North American home buyers view an average of 19 homes and spend an average of 124 hours to find a home.

How much time is spent in the homes listed for sale? According to recent Zolo survey data, where more than 1,800 recent home buyers were asked about their most recent home buying experience:

• 5% spent 0 to 15 minutes viewing the home they bought
• 16% spent 16 to 30 minutes
• 17% spent 31 to 45 minutes
• 24% spent 46 to 60 minutes
• 28% spent 61 to 120 minutes
• 5% spent 121 minutes to 240 minutes
• 5% spent 240 + minutes viewing the home they bought

That means if a home buyer bought a home based on the median sale price of $232,500, listed on Zillow as of February 2019, the cost per minute to view that home would range from approximately$968.75 to $15,500 USD.

Keep in mind, not all of these minutes were spent on one visit:

• 10% of buyers made only 1 visit to the home they finally bought
• 23% had 2 visits
• 30% had 3 visits
• 20% had 4 visits
• 9% had 5 visits

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Younger Buyers Spend More Time

Turns out younger buyers spend more time viewing a property before pulling the trigger to buy.

• Buyers aged 21 to 29, saw a place 3 to 4 times before putting in an offer
• Buyers aged 30 to 39 saw a place only twice before putting in an offer
• 1% of respondents bought a home sight unseen — (using online listings and photos)

What did these home shoppers end up buying? 

• More than half (52%) bought a single-family detached home
• 8% bought a semi-detached
• 11% bought a townhouse
• 8% bought a condo-apartment

* The remaining buyers bought either a row-house (1%), cottage/vacation property (4%), or investment property with multiple units (4 units or less - 10%; 5 units or more - 6%).

These stats confirm how little time buyers have when shopping and viewing their most expensive asset, which is all the more reason for buyers to get help from experienced real estate professionals.