Real Estate and the Social Networking Movement

Brad Inman of Inman Blog posted a great article explaining the link between the social networking movement and real estate.

He discussed how technology and today’s generation have revolutionalized the real estate industry.

During the previous generation, the trend was to "keep up with the Joneses".   People tend to brag about their achievements, the success of their children, vacations, cars and real estate. Brad Inman added "…we are an individualistic and prideful generation, measured on our accomplishment not our vulnerability.  Asking for help is not something we do easily, as we measure ourselves on having the answers."

Meanwhile, today’s generation still tell their friends about the house they just bought, but not necessarily to brag but to collaborate.  They engage their friends to participate in their various activities which include house hunting, investing, looking for a job, dating and even partying. They usually do these online through social networking sites such as MySpace or Facebook. Through these sites, they communicate to their friends, ask for help, vent off or ask for comments.  Finding a house for instance, becomes a group effort.  It is not solely base anymore on the efforts or knowledge of one individual.

From a real estate point of view, today’s technologies have empowered the consumer.  Real estate professionals are not anymore the sole source of information nor do they have full control of the transaction.  The internet made almost everything and anything available in real time to the consumer. Property listings, the latest news or even someone’s personal experience can virtually reach any consumer via the internet.

On one hand, the real estate industry gained the advantage of marketing to a larger audience.  Real estate professionals are not limited anymore to transact with the people they meet.  They can do business with people from other cities, states or even from other countries without leaving their office.

The social networking movement and today’s generation have taught us to be more open not only to new technologies but to changes in general. Doing business today, especially in the real estate industry became more personal, transparent and communal.