What Are The Most Common Real Estate Questions That People Google?
We look at what search engine data can tell us about the property market.
What do buyers and sellers really want to know?
Did you know that the average person conducts three or four Google searches a day?
That adds up to around 99,000 search queries every second going through Google alone – the equivalent of 8.5 billion searches a day or two trillion searches a year.
These days, search engines know almost everything that’s on our minds – including many of our questions about the property market. We look at what search engine data can tell us about the property market and what buyers and sellers really want to know.
So, what are the most searched-for real estate terms?
Most common real estate search questions
Google Trends data from 2022 revealed the most common real estate questions people were asking at that time. Interestingly, these questions veered towards the “how to” of buying property.
The most commonly searched questions included:
- How to buy a house
- How to save a deposit
- How much can I borrow
- Is it a good time to buy
- How to use equity to buy an investment property
- How to buy with super
- How to buy with a low income
- When should I buy a house
Buying a property isn’t something people normally do every day, so for many of us it is unfamiliar territory. It can also be a long journey from wanting to buy to actually making that purchase – especially if you need to save a deposit or you’re selling your current home but don’t know where to move to.
Our team enjoys helping buyers and sellers navigate the process of buying and selling. One of the things we love the most is seeing our clients go through different stages of their property journey – from buying their first home to upsizing or downsizing. But if you need particular assistance with a specific property search we always recommend you enlist an experienced buyer’s agent to help you on your journey.
Changing search behaviour
In recent years people have become more concerned with financing a property purchase due to the higher interest rate environment.
It’s perhaps not surprising then that Google Trends released a report that revealed search interest in interest rates and mortgage loans hit an all-time high in Australia in 2023.
The top five questions Australians asked Google about interest rates and mortgages last year were:
- When will interest rates go down?
- How high will interest rates go?
- What is the current interest rate in Australia?
- How to calculate interest rate?
- What are interest rates?
The same report showed that interest in the search term “mortgage cliff” was up 1,200%. Another similar top trending question playing on people’s minds was, “Will the housing market crash in 2023?”.
We also fielded a lot of these questions from worried buyers. But, as we all know now, the market remained strong despite rising interest rates.
What else do people want to know about property?
Interestingly, many buyers use a search engine rather than a listings website like realestate.com.au or Domain to carry out their property search. Google Trends revealed that 12 times as many people entered the search term “house for sale” in 2023 compared to 2004.
According to Answer The Public, many people begin their search by typing in terms such as:
- Property near beach for sale
- Property to rent in Sydney
- Property with granny flat for sale
Go beyond Google
Google is a great starting point for any question you may have. But in the same way that your GP would tell you that you shouldn’t rely on “Dr Google” for medical advice, we don’t believe your real estate search should start and finish with a search engine either.
Instead, always seek expert advice from a real estate professional, buyer’s agent, financial adviser, mortgage broker, conveyancer or lawyer, specific to your circumstances.
You should also get offline and go see properties in person at open homes so you can get a real sense of the market and know exactly what your money can buy.
We’d encourage all buyers and sellers to come to us for advice and draw upon our local expertise and over 30 years experience in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs property market. And, if you’re looking for a real estate agent to sell your property, we recommend you ask us these 10 questions.
Want more?
Contact our team today to find out more about how we can help you buy and sell in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.