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The jury’s in and it is official: women rule the roost when it comes to searching for and deciding on the next property purchase.
The latest research from the company I work for, global real estate leader Raine & Horne, shows that property ads generated by digital social and search marketing tool Amplify are overwhelmingly catching the eye of Australian women (72 per cent) compared to men (28 per cent).
Exclusive to Raine & Horne in Australia, Amplify is an innovative technology that uses the latest digital programming, predictive analytics and artificial intelligence to target property ads across social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Google to ensure a strong match of properties with buyers.
Since launching in April 2018, Amplify has exposed the Raine & Horne brand over 55 million times, allowing properties listed with Raine & Horne to reach over 9 million home buyers.
Almost three-quarters of click-throughs made by women
Raine & Horne does not program Amplify advertisements by gender, but by real estate preference; for example, whether a buyer is interested in a three-bedroom house in a Sydney suburb or an inner-city apartment in Darwin.
Despite gender neutrality, homes advertised through Amplify have overwhelmingly been viewed by women, with 72 per cent of click-throughs being by women compared to 28 per cent by men.
Research shows that women across all ages spend more time on social media than men. However, our findings confirm that when it comes to property listings, the gender differences extend well beyond this norm, which highlights the important role women play in the Australian property market.
Let’s get to the bottom of the findings
Women have long been recognised as the important decision-maker when it comes to selecting a home.
To make some sense of these findings, I turned to my colleague and sales agent extraordinaire, Jane Schumann from Raine & Horne Double Bay. Jane has several theories on why women may dominate real estate decision-making. She explained: “Particularly if it is a family where the wife chooses to stay at home to look after kids, she’ll be spending a lot of time in the property. So, she wants to live in a home that is as pleasant as possible.”
Many women will take an interest in the kitchen, too, while Jane added: “In my experience, plenty of women prefer big bedrooms and bathrooms.”
Likewise, for the working mother, the proximity to a school or childcare centre is one of the first things she’ll often look for when weighing up a property. Jane says security can be more important to women than men, particularly alarms and video intercoms. The intercoms are popular not only for security but also to monitor who enters and leaves the property.
Storage is another essential issue for female buyers, Jane suggested. “Depending on the price of the property, many women like a walk-in robe and dressing rooms.”
Women aged 55-plus dominate click-throughs
Raine & Horne’s data shows that women aged 55–64 account for almost one in five (17 per cent) views of property ads on social media.
This is an exciting finding as it dispels the myth that when women reach their mid-50s they are no longer active in the property market.
Anecdotal evidence from Raine & Horne’s network of 3,000 agents shows that women aged 55-plus are often empty-nesters looking to downsize, or they are buying a home of their own following separation and divorce. A third category of women in the 55-plus age group are not buying themselves, rather they are researching properties that could be ideal first homes for their adult children.
What these findings highlight is that females cannot be underestimated when it comes to selling property. Women of all ages continue to be a driving force in the market, and property listings need to be appropriately pitched towards modern Australia.
Anjee Hopton, national marketing manager, Raine & Horne
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