New research, released today by View Media Group’s view.com.au, shows FOMO (fear of missing out) is as real as ever with Australians spending close to a third less time purchasing property since the 2020 survey.
The time it took to move from the dreaming phase through to purchase phase reduced from 29.6 months in 2020 to 20.6 months in this year’s survey*.
Paul Tyrrell, Chief Marketing Officer said “the significant reduction in time buyers are taking to move along the path to purchase is a clear sign of increased buyer urgency amid falling interest rates and a more favourable lending landscape.”
“Stock availability due to the on going housing availability crisis is clearly an issue that accelerates this urgency.
“The research highlights that buyers know the time to act is now, and they want to purchase before another property boom cycle hits the market, driven by government first home buyer and downsizer incentives, interest rate cuts and greater borrowing capacity.
“Once buyers move into the purchasing phase when they are actively putting offers in or raising their hands at auctions; this stage of the journey has more than halved since 2022 from 6.8 months down to only 3.2 months*. ”
The research conducted by view.com.au, in conjunction with market research agency Australian Regional Insights, aimed to better understand the stages within the property journey and how property seekers recalled, used and trusted media sources.
With over 700 property-engaged Australians taking part, the survey is the fourth study view.com.au has commissioned within this space, with the first completed in late 2020. The study also highlighted the motivations for purchasing, the types of buyers and further insights into vendors.
Tyrrell continued, “In continuing this survey annually, we are able to understand the changes in the stages in the buyer’s path to purchase and the different influences on buyers. We found that within residential buyers, two ends of the spectrum are particularly active, first home buyers and
downsizers.”
“The survey also highlighted the top sources of information for buyers, with portals continuing to play a large role. However google search, social media and agency websites themselves were top sources of information. Not surprisingly, social media ranked particularly highly with Gen Z (58%) and Millennial (33%) audiences**.”
For agents, the research highlighted the continued need for multi-channel campaigns to not only attract potential buyers but to assist in finding their next vendor. When removing the portals as an information source, buyers in the purchasing stage are almost 3 times more likely to use google search as a key source of information and in the active stage 46% more likely to use social media than other media types***.
Furthermore 85% of vendors believe that listing their property across multiple portals is the number 1 ‘must have’ in an agent’s marketing strategy****.
A new deep dive this year put the spotlight on vendors, to further understand their property journey. It found vendors typically sell within three months, and settlement takes just under four months. It also highlighted the vast majority sell through a real estate agent rather than through brokers and private channels.
“The agency model is still the most common way to sell in Australia. However, in choosing agents, it was interesting to find that the personality of the agent was the most important factor when selecting which agent to represent your property. Following their personality, their suburb expertise, sales approach, brand and reputation and marketing plan were also important factors,” commented Trent Casson, Managing Director, Residential.
“In terms of their marketing plan, it was a must have to list across a majority of portals and also include a sign-board, quality photography, social media strategy and offer competitive pricing. This feedback also helps support our view.resi product strategy, launched in late 2024,” continued Trent Casson.
View.resi combines premium presence on view.com.au, its off-portal performance marketing product, Acquire, and data and AI solutions through Propic including the virtual concierge, Claire.
The portal offering includes a free premium listing on view.com.au, unique in a highly competitive portal space where property marketing costs continue to escalate despite rising cost of living pressure.
“The path to purchase research is key for our business as it helps us in further understanding the ever evolving behaviour of buyers and sellers. This in turn helps inform our product strategy, whilst also validating our commercial strategy. Furthermore, this research assists in educating our premium partners and helping them further understand the behaviours of potential customers. We look forward to continuing to deliver this research in the years to come,” continued Trent Casson.
View.resi has been on a significant growth trajectory recently with a slate of new premium partnerships recently announced including Marshall White, Highland, BresicWhitney, Abercromby’s and Clarke & Humel.
Sources:
View Path to purchase 2025 Research, conducted by Australian Regional Insights, 17 March to 4 April, 2025.
*How long did {Dreaming/Considering/Actively searching/Purchasing} take?
**Thinking about the information you have found to date, which of the following do you recall using or gaining information from through your property journey? Base: n=527
***Thinking about the information you have found to date, which of the following do you recall using or gaining information from? Base: n=527 (removing portals)
**** In your opinion, what are the must haves in a marketing plan to sell your home? Base: Vendors who are selling or recently sold a property and selected “marking plan” at a driver of agent/broker choice n=48
