WHERE BUYER FOUND THE HOME THEY PURCHASED, 2004-2010
(Percentage Distribution)
  2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Real estate agent 38% 36% 36% 34% 34% 36% 38%
Internet 15 24 24 29 32 36 37
Yard sign 16 15 15 14 15 12 11
Friend, neighbor or relative 7 7 8 8 7 6 6
Home builder or their agent 7 7 8 8 7 5 4
Print newspaper advertisement 5 3 3 3 2 2 2
Directly from sellers/Knew the sellers 5 5 5 3 3 2 2
Home book or magazine 2 1 1 1 1 * *
Other 4 * * * * * *

* Less than one percent. Source The National Association Of Realtors: 2010 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers

As you can see by the stats above that the real estate agent, internet and yard sign represent 86% of the sources where a buyer found their home. I find it interesting that many of my competitors focus so much of their efforts on newspaper and home magazine ads when that source is the lowest performance of any marketing efforts