Digital Real Estate Tours: What Does And Doesn’t Work For Today’s Home Buyers

• Three out of five home buyers were willing to purchase after a virtual tour only.
• Prerecorded virtual tours resulted in higher levels of home buyer satisfaction than live virtual tours and panoramic photos.
• More than half of home buyers agreed virtual tours were more useful than expected.
• Home buyers cared more about a tour’s video quality than they did about being able to ask questions during the virtual showing.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, more and more buyers have been turning to digital solutions to shop for their next home. With a few taps in an app, buyers can directly view and tour homes for sale. They can even purchase a home without ever seeing it in person – and surprisingly, many do.

The need for digital experiences has increased as buyers continue to look to minimize their risk of COVID exposure and expedite the house hunting process. It’s important for sellers to understand what does and doesn’t work for today’s online home buyers. The results of a recent survey of more than 800 home buyers reveal how they’ve handled the shift to digital home searches.

Prerecorded Virtual Tours Were More Popular Than Live Virtual Tours

While in-person showings and open houses remain the most common way to view a home someone is thinking of buying, virtual tours are making gains. More than half of all home buyers surveyed watched prerecorded virtual tours. Another 45% participated in live virtual tours. Among respondents who purchased a home, 51% participated in a live virtual tour.

A prerecorded virtual tour is a useful feature for both sellers and buyers. It showcases 360-degree views of every space inside and outside of a home. Buyers can take these tours at any time to get a feel for the home’s layout and features. It’s easy, convenient and this survey shows it is proven way to capture a buyer’s interest. Many potential home buyers view virtual tours before deciding to schedule an in-person showing with a real estate agent.

Though fairly common, with nearly half of home buyers experiencing one, live virtual tours were less popular among respondents. Social media platforms have become popular outlets for live tours, as they’re an affordable way to livestream, network and increase a home’s exposure. Availability, connectivity issues and scheduling conflicts may be some factors contributing to less participation in live virtual tours.

Both Traditional And New Viewing Options Deemed Desirable

According to survey results, half of today’s home buyers preferred in-person showings while the other half were open to a variety of virtual options. This divide is likely the result of the real estate market’s ongoing digital transformation, driven by both COVID concerns as well as buyer preference.

When home sales skyrocketed during the pandemic due, in part, to historically low mortgage rates, the market had to adapt to accommodate the flood of new buyers – often without meeting face to face. Enter the recent boom of virtual home showings. Many home buyers reported that they took a virtual tour due to seller preference or government mandates, but more than a third chose a virtual tour because it’s what they preferred.

These results suggest there’s no longer one right way to show a house, so it’s essential for agents and buyers to adapt to new buying and selling trends.

Majority Found Virtual Tours More Useful Than Expected

Virtual showings offer many advantages to home buyers. They reduce COVID exposure risk, save time and provide unprecedented 24/7 access to multiple homes on the market. Despite the fact that 57% of respondents found virtual showings were better than expected, 94% of respondents felt that virtual showings put buyers at a disadvantage compared to sellers.

To purchase a home, a buyer needs to feel confident about their investment. It’s important for agents to build trust through diligent communication with virtual viewers. Holding an open forum to answer any questions after an online open house is one way to show a willingness to communicate honestly about the home. Buyers also appreciate agents who promptly answer phone calls, emails and text messages about a home they’ve recently viewed.

How To Create Effective Virtual Tours

Nobody wants to purchase a home that they feel “just OK” about. Agents and sellers alike understand that quality is key when selling online. Anything less than the best might turn off potential buyers. Home buyers were clearly in agreement, considering more than half of respondents cited image and video quality as essential elements of a successful virtual showing.

When potential buyers view homes on various real estate websites, practically every listing includes plenty of still photographs. Incorporating more immersive media, such as video and panoramic pictures, adds a new dimension to the experience. More than 60% of home buyers rated their level of satisfaction with prerecorded virtual tours highly, crowning this method as most popular.

Creating an effective virtual tour also involves staging a home. Homes look best on camera when they’re clean, furnished and depersonalized. Virtual staging is a new digital way to stage a home that utilizes editing software to help potential buyers better envision what a home might look like with new furniture or a different color scheme or design style. Whether done virtually or traditionally, staging is important because buyers are more likely to purchase a home if they feel an emotional connection to the space by envisioning themselves living in it.

Virtual Showing Visibility Is Good, But Could Be Better

There’s no doubt that the use of virtual media is rising in today’s real estate market. The question has become whether new digital technologies can eventually replace in-person property tours for most buyers and sellers. Considering more than half of home buyers succeeded in getting a “feel” for a home through digital means, the possibility appears more feasible than before.

Almost two-thirds (63%) of surveyed home buyers felt virtual showings offered a good view of the most important areas of a home, but 25% of viewers struggled to see common problem areas during a virtual tour. According to respondents, prerecorded tours offered the best visibility, while virtual tours of rendered spaces were least clear. As photography, virtual reality and tech advance, virtual tour visibility will likely follow suit and improve in the future.

Technology Helps Buyers Access Some Tough-To-Reach Places

Whether touring a home in person or virtually, evaluating the condition of high or tight spaces is always challenging. These are places potential buyers want to see in order to evaluate potential issues. It’s good to include these spaces on home tours whenever possible.

One benefit of drone and panoramic photography is getting up-close views of hard-to-reach areas like the roof, which 53% of respondents said they’ve struggled to see properly in the past. Drone footage also helps to paint a complete picture of an overall structure and often features 360-degree views of the property around the home.

Sellers are typically required to disclose known issues with the home they’re selling to their buyers. However, it’s also a good idea for buyers to schedule a professional home inspection before purchasing a home, to get a professional’s perspective on the property’s condition.

Highlighting ‘Intangibles’

The emotional component of house shopping can sometimes sway buyers into considering properties they may not have otherwise thought about. The question is whether virtual technology can showcase those “intangibles” in a compelling way.

No matter their worries before a virtual tour, many home buyers did experience what they were concerned about. These results clearly point to the fact that there is room for improvement and that some buyers simply need to see a home in person.

What Buyers Like Most About Virtual Showings

The digital transformation of real estate has been well received by many home buyers. Survey results showed that only 17% of respondents felt virtual showings had more negatives than positives. Here’s a closer look at the top upsides of virtual tours and areas where there’s room for improvement.

Virtual Marketing Is Here to Stay

The digital transformation of the real estate market continues as technology advances and younger, more tech-savvy generations become home buyers.

Convenient, safe and time-saving virtual tours have helped many buyers during their search for a new home, particularly during the pandemic. It’s vital for agents and sellers to produce high-quality digital media – especially prerecorded virtual tours – for today’s home buyers. Staging a home, whether traditionally or virtually, and clear communication with buyers are other important components. When done right, virtual home showings can be very successful both on their own or as a supplement to in-person showings.

The future of home showings is here, and it’s likely here to stay.

Methodology And Limitations

Rocket Homes surveyed 836 people who shopped for homes during the pandemic. Among these respondents, 502 were men, 330 were women and four identified as nonbinary. These respondents ranged in age from 18 – 71 years old with an average age of 37.

To help gather accurate responses, all respondents were required to identify and answer an attention-check question. In some cases, questions and answers have been paraphrased or rephrased for clarity. These data rely on self-reported information, and potential issues with self-reported data include, but are not limited to, selective memory, telescoping and other attribution errors.