Seniors Using the Internet for new home search

Do you think that only boomers and Gen Xers use the Internet to find homes? A new survey conducted by Insight Express, may change your ideas about how seniors search for homes, and what kinds of properties they want.More than 1,300 survey participants, age 55 and older, said that the Internet is an essential tool for researching properties.

In fact, the Internet was the second-most-popular home buying research method, just behind physically "touring potential neighborhoods."Nearly 70 percent of seniors who might consider a home purchase within the next five years cited "photos and virtual tours" as the most important tools available when looking for real estate property online.

Although many seniors view Internet searches as a crucial first step, they still view a qualified real estate sales associate as "the most influential professional" during the entire home buying process, according to the survey.So much for seniors not liking technology.

Seniors want to stay near the friends and family contacts they've built in their own community, but they also want a home that will be an attractive gathering place for their children and grandchildren, rather like a "mini-resort," as one expert put it. They want their home to be fun, yet the home also must allow them to play out their remaining years with universal design benefits that allow them to "age in place." Features such as wide doorways that allow easy wheelchair access should look like an integral part of the home's sumptuous design.

Other amenities that seniors want that aren't so surprising, according to the NAHB, are proximity to shopping, houses of worship, and medical facilities.And, seniors want access to high-speed Internet service and other smart-home technologies that promote communication, safety, and security.

Exerpt reprinted with Permission from Realty Times