2012 Survey of California Home Sellers

Methodology Telephone surveys conducted in August/September of 600 randomly selected home sellers who sold in the past 6 months. (2011 study surveyed sellers who sold in the last 3 months.) Maximum sampling error: ±4.1 percent at two standard deviations (a 95% confidence level). (Subsets of the total sample will have a higher sampling error.)

ABOUT THE SELLER

The Typical Seller

Majority of Sellers are Females

Females Hold Majority Q: Your Gender

Median Age: 37 Q: What is your age?

Sellers Are Getting Younger Q: What is your age?

Gen X and Y Dominate Seller Population Q: What is your age?

Minorities are the Majority Q: How would you describe your ethnic background?

Ethnic Background

Most Sellers are Married Q:What was the marital status the head of your household at the time of the sale?

Household Income Q: Which of the following categories best describes your total annual household income from all sources?

Annual Household Income

First-time Sellers on the Rise Q: Was this your first experience in selling a house?

Affordability Problems is #1 Reason for Selling Q: Why did you sell your home? *Affordability problems include: couldn’t afford mortgage, moved to less expensive market, loss of household income, income not keeping up with expenses, monthly payment went up, new job paid less, needed to move to less expensive residence.

Most Sellers Currently Rent Q: Do you own or rent your current home?

Fewer Sellers Renting

Majority of Sellers Moved Out of State Q. County in which home was located. In which county is your current residence located?

More Sellers Moving out of State

Sellers Not Optimistic About Future Home Prices Q: Do you think home prices in your neighborhood will go up, down, or stay flat?

Sellers Optimism About Future Home Prices Over the Years Q: Do you think home prices in your neighborhood will go up?

ABOUT THE HOME

Average Home is 21 Years Old & 2,600+ Square Feet Q: What type of home was it?

Average Type of Home over the years

Average Sale Price is 6% Lower than the List Price Q: What was the initial listing price of your home? Selling price?

Average Listing Price vs. Average Sale Price

Percentage Difference of Average Sale Price vs. Listing Price Over the Years

THE SELLING PROCESS

Average Home Owner Considered Selling More than a Year Before Actually Doing So Q: How long did you consider selling before actually doing so?

Average Months Owner Considered Selling Home in the Past

Most Important Websites for Sellers Q: What was the single most important web site you used in your home selling process?

Most Important Websites for Sellers (Top 3)

Nearly All Homes Were Listed on MLS Q: Was your home listed on a multiple listing service? If no, why not?

Most Escrows Don’t Close on Time Q: Did your escrow close on time?

Most Escrows Don’t Close on Time Due to Loan Problems 29% Trouble with buyer loan approval 23% Loan didn’t fund on time 23% Last minute lender requirements 16% Lender didn’t approval terms 12% Paperwork not completed on time Q: Why did your escrow not close on time?

More than Half of Homes Fell Out of Escrow at Least 3 Times Q: How many times did your home fall out of escrow?

83% of Sellers Received at Least 2 Offers Q: How many offers did you receive from buyers?

What Sellers Would Change About the Sale Q: If there was one thing you could change about your recent home sale, what would it be? Sell for higher price (37%)Sell faster (34%) Market property more aggressively (10%) Improve agent communication (9%)Have agent negotiate harder (6%)

SELLERS WORKING WITH AGENTS

¾ of Sellers Found Agent Online Q. How did you find your real estate agent?

¾ of Sellers Interview at Least 3 Agents Q: How many agents did you interview prior to selecting the agent you used in your recent home selling process?

Sellers Interview More Agents Q: How many agents did you interview prior to selecting the agent you used in your recent home selling process?

Reason Seller Selected Agent Q: What was the single most important reason for selecting the agent you used in your recent home sale? 1 st to respond (26%) Appeared most responsive (25%) Appeared most aggressive (19%) Most qualified (6%) Negotiation skills (5%)

More than Half of Sellers Google their Agents Q: Did you Google your agent?

More than ¾ of Seller Agents are REALTORS® Q: Was your agent a REALTOR®?

7 out of 10 Gen Y Sellers Initially Listed their Home With Another Agent Q: Did you initially list your home with an agent other than the one with whom you sold it?

More Sellers Initially Listed Home With Another Agent Q: Did you initially list your home with an agent other than the one with whom you sold it?

1/3 of Sellers Changed Agents Due to Home Taking Too Long to Sell Q: Why did you start with one real estate agent and change to another? Took too long to sell (34%) Not skilled in short sale negotiation (32%) Poor communication (24%)

Response Time is Most Important in Agent Selection Category First agent to respond to my inquiry/quickest response time Agent offered the best deal, lowest commission rate Agent offered best marketing proposal Agent was a REALTOR®N/A3.8 Agent was the most knowledgeable in the market area where the property was located3.8 Agent's knowledge of handling foreclosures, short sales, other distressed properties Agent was referred by relative/friends/co-workers Q: Please rate the following factors by their importance in your decision on selecting the agent you used for your home selling process on a scale from 1 to 5, where 5 is “Extremely important” and 1 is “Not at all important”.

Agent Satisfaction Ratings Relatively Unchanged Category Marketing the home Setting the price Preparing the home for sale Assuring the buyer is qualified Value received for what you paid your real estate agent Negotiating the transaction3.0 Overall satisfaction with the real estate agent2.8 Overall satisfaction with the home selling process Q: Please rate your degree of satisfaction with your agent for each of the following aspects on a scale of 1 to 5, where 1 is least satisfied and 5 is most satisfied.

Seller Satisfaction Declining

Seller Satisfaction with Agent is Correlated to Sale Price Q: Please explain why you had that level of satisfaction with your agent. 1. Negotiated good deal (74%) 2. Got best price (50%) 3. Listened to needs (35%) 1. Didn’t get desired price (91%) 2. House took too long to sell (64%) 3. Ineffective communication (20%)

Communication

Most Sellers Used Social Media Q: Did you use social media in the home selling process?

Agent / Seller Communication Gap in Telephone & Text Message Q: What was the actual method of communication used most frequently with your agent? Q: What was your preferred method of communication with your agent?

The Communication Gap Widens With the Generations Q: What was the actual method of communication used most frequently with your agent? Q: What was your preferred method of communication with your agent?

97% of Sellers Expect Response Within 1 Hour Q: On average, what was the ACTUAL time of your agent to return any form of communication to you? Q: What was the typical response time you EXPECTED from your agent to return any form of communication with you?

Q. What was the typical response time you expected from your agent to return any form of communication to you? More Sellers Expect Instant Response from Agent

Seller Advice to Agents 71% Sell home faster 55% Improve communication speed 43% Negotiate more aggressively 34% Improve communication quality 23% Price home to sell from start Q: What advice would you give to real estate agents to improve the process or level of service?

FINANCING

Most Sellers had Non- traditional Loans Q: What type of mortgage did you have?

Fewer Sellers Had Adjustable Loans Q: What type of mortgage did you have?

More Sellers Tap Into their Home Equity Q: At the time of your home sale, was any portion of your outstanding mortgage balance due to a cash-out refinance?

More Sellers Considered Strategic Default Q: As you may be aware, some home owners decided to stop paying their mortgages because their home value was lower than the balance on their loan. This is known as strategic default. Did you consider a strategic default?