Study: Real Estate Ads Grow Online
Borrell Associates Sees ‘Bleak’ Outlook for Classified Listings
By Michael Malone -- Broadcasting & Cable, 11/20/2007 12:16:00 PM
Total ad spending for real estate is down 3% in 2007, but online advertising for the segment skyrocketed 25.8%, according to a new study from media research firm Borrell Associates.
Encouraging for the station business, online advertising is growing so fast that Borrell projected that more real estate money will be spent online than on newspapers in 2012.
A less spectacular, though still robust, 12.4% increase is predicted for online real estate advertising in 2008.
"Real Estate Outlook: 2007-2012" also forecast a “bleak” outlook for classified listings: “A combination of economic uncertainty, falling prices and rising mortgage interest rates makes it probably that the volume of listings will decline, but also probable that the pot of money to be spent on advertising will likewise decline.”
Dips comparable to this year's 3.3% slide in total real estate ad spending are predicted for the next two years. The segment averaged 9% growth between 2001 and 2005. Not surprisingly, newspapers will bear the brunt of the decline, with a 6.8% drop for 2007 and a 16% freefall in 2009.
On the bright side for some papers, the study also cited the potential might of the consortium of Yahoo, Zillow.com and 11 newspaper companies in the real estate ad race.
