When Jen and Matt Warner began looking for new home, they spent as much time online as they did on the road.
They scoured website search engines such as Zillow.com and Realtor.com, bounced to real estate offices' websites, dropped virtual pins on map software and surveyed new listings sent to them by a real estate agent.
"I really want to be overly knowledgeable about the process and about the homes out there," she said.
The wired, and wireless, buyers are part of a trend, people increasingly connected to the Internet and better-informed. The availability of Internet search engines, data mining, and instant availability of information from hand-held devices has changed the way homes are bought and marketed.
"Most buyers start their search on the Internet before even going to a lender," said Jackie Ruddy of Jack Ruddy Real Estate in Dunmore. "For the Realtor, it means we can expect better-informed buyers. But it also means higher expectations of us in showcasing a home."
The Warners knew they could not go forward without selling their existing home. When Diane Calibro of Classic Properties told them she thought they'd be able to get back what they paid for it, they set to work. They had an idea of what they wanted - at least 2,000 square feet, three bedrooms, two baths, in the Abington Heights School District. They scrutinized about 100 homes online, poring through spec sheets that offer a breakdown of amenities and room sizes.
The Warners, who are both educators, learned to be leery of homes with many "days on market" and listings with few photos or just exterior photos. Conversely, they appreciated the honesty and transparency of homes with 360-degree virtual tours or video tours. They receive email alerts when new homes came on the market that met their criteria. Once they found homes online they were interested in, they would often do drive-bys to see the home in person. Only after sifting through dozens of properties would they contact Diane Calibro with a list of homes to see. They toured 20 homes.
This is a contrast to way homebuying used to be, with the buyer completely dependent upon the real estate agent for information. Other than For Sale signs and advertisements, the only way to find homes was to visit an agent's office and leaf through the Multiple Listing Service book of small grainy photo and condensed information. That moved to dot-matrix printers, and then faxes with black-and-white curb shots that still offered only a vague notion of what a home was like. A buyer's agent had to spend more time and more gas driving buyers from home to home.
The new era, the real estate agent spends less time with better-informed buyers, even as it has placed new expectations on listing agents. In addition to the MLS and advertising, sellers expect homes to be marketed with lavish photos or virtual tours that allow those on the web to zoom through a home. "Now, if you don't like the cabinets you see online, you don't see the home in person," explained Ms. Ruddy.
There are a host of tech add-ons. Several local firms now have QR codes on For Sale signs. When an image of those black and white cubes are snapped by a cellphone or tablet, it calls up more detailed information about that home. Gone the are plastic boxes and rain-soaked data sheets.
Opening an app and pressing a scan button seemed effortless, but Classic Properties found most buyers do drive-bys and few even leave their car, said Classic Properties broker Steven Farrell. Buyers viewed climbing through snow or lurking into a yard to scan a clear image of code as inconvenient or intrusive, Mr. Farrell said.
"Kwkly," pronounced "quickly," offered an alternative. An interested buyer can text FYI to 59559, a number posted outside the home. The GPS-enabled kwkly identifies the buyer's location and connects them to the house for sale, sending the home spec sheet to the interested buyer and the lead to the listing agent.
Usually, shoppers don't have to leave the car. Getting the info is as easy as a sending a text message.
For all the web surfing, the Warners eventually ended up buying a home that came from one of Ms. Calibro's email blasts. Nevertheless, their search, the process, and the services of a real estate agent were indispensable.
Shopping for a home is different from buying a home. They noted that Mrs. Calibro often had information about a property that wouldn't turn up on a data sheet - such as a recently failed radon test. While none of their work resulted in the home they purchased, it equipped them to put the home in context and confidently put in an offer.
"The tools and technology helped us decide what we really wanted and Diane helped take was on the computer and make it reality," Ms. Warner said.
Contact the writer: dfalchek@timesshamrock.com