BRIAN BUFFINI’SREAL ESTATE REPORT

1ST QUARTER 2015

Existing home sales in September increased 2.4% to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.17 million.

Home sales in 2015 are expected to reach their highest level in two years.

The total housing inventory at the end of September declined by 1.3%, resulting in 2.3 million exsisting homes available for sale, which is a monthly supply of 5.3% at the current sales pace.

Existing home sales are 80% back to normal.

New construction starts are 49% back to normal, up from 37% a year ago.

In the next 12 months, 40% of Americans say that the homes in their neighborhood will be worth more, 37% say they’ll remain the same, 15% aren’t sure and 8% say they’ll be worth less.

66% of Americans say they would buy if

they were going to move today.68% of Americans

say that now is a good time to buy; 39% say that it’s a good time to sell.

Northeast: Existing home sales increased 1.5% in September 2014 to an annual rate of 680,000.

Midwest: Existing home sales declined 5.6% in September 2014 to an annual rate of 1.17 million.

South: Existing home sales increased 5.0% in September 2014 to an annual rate of 2.12 million.

West: Existing home sales increased 7.1% in September 2014 to an annual rate of 1.20 million.

1. Texas 2. Florida 3. California 4. North Carolina

5. Georgia 6. Colorado 7. Washington 8. Arizona

9. Virginia 10. South Carolina

SOURCES: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS, TRULIA, BUILDER MAGAZINE, FANNIE MAE

INDUSTRY FACTS

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MEDIAN DAYS ON THE MARKET:

EXISTING HOME SALES BY REGION:

56 Days in September 2014

50 Days in September 2013

35% of homes sold in September

were on the market for less than a month.

The home ownership rate is 64.3%.

7

3

8

6

15

2

1049

Americans are waiting 5 years longer to marry and are having kids later. The decline is also attributed to short-term economic conditions, including student loan debt and poor earning potential.

TOP 10 STATES FOR NEW HOMES SALES IN 2014

vs.

MORTGAGE STATS

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12% of buyers thought that saving for a

down payment was difficult.

95% of first-time buyers

financed their home

purchase, while 84% of repeat

buyers did the same.

Buyers typically financed 90% of their home purchase.

92% of borrowers chose a

fixed-rate mortgage.

43% Student loans.

38% Credit card debt.

31% Car loans.

26% of buyers say that the

mortgage application

and approval process were somewhat

more difficult than expected.

SOURCES: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, FANNIE MAE, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS

45% of Americans say that mortgage rates

will go up in the next 12 months.

45% say that they’ll stay the same.

5% say that they’ll decrease.

It’s evenly split: 48% of Americans say

that it would be difficult to get a mortgage

today, while 48% say it would be easy.

44% of Millennials think it will be

difficult to qualify for a mortgage. 88% of buyers financed

their home purchase,

including 97% of Gen Y.

TYPE OF LOANS BUYERS CHOSE:

61% Conventional

22% FHA

12% VA

AMONG FIRST-TIME BUYERS:

AMONG REPEAT BUYERS:

69% Conventional

15% FHA

13% VA

48% Conventional

35% FHA

9% VA

Top 3 Sources of Down Payments1. Savings2. Sale of a primary residence3. Gift from family/friend

COMMON SAVINGS OBSTACLES:

SOURCES: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, BLOOMBERG, TRULIA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS, FANNIE MAE

DISTRESSED PROPERTIESAVERAGE TIME ON MARKET:

Short sales

116 days

Foreclosed properties

59 days

Non-distressed properties

55 days

Foreclosures sold for an average discount of 14% below market value in September 2014.

The housing market is sounder than it has been in a decade: The number of homes in foreclosure each quarter is down to pre-crisis levels of 2005 and 2006.

DISTRESSED PROPERTY AS PERCENTAGE OF ALL SALES:

10% September 2014

vs.

14% September 2013

7 out 10 of distressed sales in September were foreclosures, while 3 were short sales.

For the 27th consecutive month, home prices increased year-over-year, growing 20.7% over the past two years.

The existing home price for all housing types in September was $209,700, up 5.6% from September 2013.

The existing condo price was $205,200, up 3.2% from September 2013.

45% of Americans say that home prices will stay the same over the next 12 months.

42% say they will go up. 8% say they will decrease.

The median price of a new home decreased 4% in September 2014 from August 2014 to $259,000.

Experts predict that existing home prices will increase 3% in 2015 and 2% in 2016.

Although home prices are increasing, they’re doing so at the slowest pace in two years.

Home prices are 75% back to normal, up from 56% a year ago.

PRICE INFORMATION

The existing single-family home price was $210,300 in September, up 5.9% from September 2013.

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SOURCE: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, THINK WITH GOOGLE

TODAY’S BUYER

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GENERATIONAL TRENDS:

31% of buyers are Gen Y.

30% Gen X.

30% Baby Boomers.

9% Silent Generation.

All generations looked online for properties first before contacting a real estate agent; however, the younger the buyer, the more likely they were to look online.

Younger buyers are more likely to purchase an older or previously owned home, while Baby Boomers are more likely to buy a new home.

97% of buyers are satisfied

with their recent home purchase.

Half of buyers begin their formal home search 6 to 12 months before buying; 3/4 start a year ahead.

92% of buyers used the Internet in some

way during their home search, with 50% of buyers using a mobile website or application.

The median household income of buyers was $84,500. Among first-time buyers, it

was $68,300. Among repeat buyers, it

was $95,000.

24% of home buyers bought due to a desire to own a home.

9% purchased a home due to a job-related relocation.

8% purchased a home to be in a better area or due to a change in their family situation.

Buyers expect to live in their homes for 12 years.

Younger buyers prefer an agent to communicate via email and text, whereas older buyers prefer a phone call.

The typical buyer searched for 10 weeks and viewed 10 homes during their search.

26% of Gen Y and 22% of Gen X buyers

found the home they purchased through their mobile device.

SOURCES: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, ZILLOW

FIRST-TIME HOME BUYER FACTS

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The median age of first-time buyers in 2013 was 31.

85% of experts predict, the median age of first-time home buyers will rise to 32 or older in the next decade.

76% of Gen Y are first-time home buyers.

41% Northeast

36% Midwest

29% of buyers in September 2014 were first-time

buyers. First-time buyers have made up less than 30% of all buyers in 17 of the past 18 months.

54% of first-time buyers were married.

18% were single females.

11% were single males.

15% were unmarried couples.

75% rented an apartment or house before buying a home.

19% lived with parents, relatives or friends.

FIRST-TIME HOME BUYERS (BY REGION):

30% South

32% West

SOURCES: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

SELLER STATS & TRENDS

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Younger sellers are more likely to sell to upgrade to a larger home or for a job relocation. Older sellers want to downsize in retirement or to be closer to friends and family.

SELLERS UPGRADED:

13% of sellers wanted to sell their homes earlier but waited because their homes were worth less than the mortgage. This was most

common among 17% of Gen Y and 19% of Gen X sellers.

40% of sellers bought a home larger than their current one.

purchased a more expensive home.

47%

53% purchased a newer home.

Sellers lived in their homes for 10 years.This is up from 6 years in 2007.

36% of sellers offered incentives to attract

buyers, including home warranty policies and closing costs.

45% of sellers reduced

the initial asking price at least once.

Gen X comprised the largest share–29%–of home sellers, followed by older Baby Boomers (22%) and younger Baby Boomers (21%).

Sellers sold their homes for an average of 97% of the listing price.

SOURCES: BUILDER MAGAZINE, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS, U.S. CENSUS BUREAU, WALL STREET JOURNAL, FANNIE MAE

CONSUMER CONFIDENCE

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51% of Americans plan to buy a home within

the next 5 years, including 61% of Millennials, 28% of Gen X and 10% of Baby Boomers.

REASONS FOR MOVING:53% of buyers undertook a home improvement project within

3 months of buying, spending an average of $4,550 on improvement projects. The kitchen was the most common space to improve.

11.7% of people moved between 2012 and 2013:

48% moved for housing-related reasons (foreclosure, wanted to move to a better neighborhood, wanted to buy a home, wanted a better home, etc.).

30.3% moved for family-related reasons (change in marital status, establish own household, etc.).

19.4% moved for employment-related reasons (retired, looking for work, to be closer to work, new job/transfer).

2.3% moved for other reasons (natural disaster, change of climate, health, attend or leave college, etc.).

73% of Millennials say that homeownership is an excellent investment.

REASONS RENTERS DON’T BUY:

56% Insufficient savings or too much debt.

53% Don’t earn enough.

41% Credit isn’t good enough.

75% of Millennials say that homeownership is an important long-term goal.

ARE RENTAL PRICES GOING UP?

55% of Americans say that home rental prices will increase in the next 12 months.

37% say they’ll stay the same.

3% say they’ll go down.

FOR MOST AMERICANS, THEIR FINANCIAL SITUATIONS ARE STABLE:

44% of Americans expect their personal financial situation to get better over the next 12 months.

41% expect it to stay the same.

12% expect it to get worse.

59% say that their household

income is the same as it was 12 months ago.

25% say that it’s significantly higher.

14% say it’s significantly lower.

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BUYERS AND THE INTERNET

Google searches for real estate listings peak in July. This year, they reached their highest point since 2008.

People who search for real estate listings are 5 times more likely to search about planning for retirement and 4 times more likely to search about finding child care.

18-34 year olds were twice as likely as 35-54 year olds to say that they’re planning to buy a home in the next year.

83% of 18-34 year olds said that they would start their

formal home search more than 6 months in advance, compared to 73% of people older than 35.

Half of all Millennials visited real estate websites in July, 36% visited real estate websites or apps on mobile devices.

Millennials are twice as likely as the average person to look at real estate information on a mobile device.

House hunters used their mobile device most to search for listings and find directions while out looking for a home.

One-quarter of Google searches for mortgages have been on mobile devices, with “mortgage calculator” making up half of the searches.

SOURCE: THINK WITH GOOGLE

PEOPLE USE THEIR MOBILE DEVICE TO:

Search for listings.

Find directions to a home.

Look for more information on a listing.

Call or email an agent directly.

Watch video tours while out looking for a home.

TODAY’S REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONAL

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WHAT DO BUYERS WANT MOST FROM THEIR AGENTS?

53% Find the right home to purchase.

12% Negotiate the terms of sale.

11% Handle the price negotiations.

8% Determine what comparable homes were selling for.

6% Handle the paperwork.

WHAT DO SELLERS WANT MOST FROM THEIR AGENTS?

23% Market home to potential buyers.

20% Sell the home within specific time frame.

19% Price home competitively.

14% Find a buyer for home.

13% Find ways to fix up home to sell it for more.

THE MEDIAN NUMBER OF TRANSACTIONS BY EXPERIENCE:

2 years or less: 3 transactions.3 to 5 years: 10 transactions.6 to 15 years: 13 transactions.16 years or more: 15 transactions.

SOURCES: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, BUFFINI & COMPANY, RISMEDIA

The average real estate professional has 12 years of experience.

61% of agents use social media or a professional

networking website.

82% of real estate professionals are “very certain” they’ll be

active in real estate in the next two years.

67% of agents have a website.

12% of agents have a real estate blog. Current Clients Past Clients Potential Clients

94% Email 68% Email 65% Email

90% Telephone 58% Telephone 58% Telephone

80% Text messaging 43% Postal mail 42% Postal mail

AGENT’S PREFERRED METHOD OF COMMUNICATION WITH:

AVERAGE TIME ON MARKET:

SOURCES: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

WHY I WORK BY REFERRAL

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88% of buyers would use their agent

again or refer them to others.

Studies show that 82% of real estate sales are the result of agent contacts from previous clients, referrals, friends, family and personal clients.

RELATIONSHIPS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN TRANSACTIONS.

You may have noticed that many real estate agents take a transactional approach to sales—identifying clients, closing the deal, and then moving on to the next one. I choose not to work that way because I believe you deserve more from the professional you decide to work with. That’s why I work by referral.

Since my primary source of new business is referrals from people who know and trust me, I don’t have to spend time prospecting and promoting myself. I can dedicate myself fully to the activities that benefit you most and always deliver truly exceptional service.

Working by referral is all about trust. And, let’s face it, when we’re seeking a service, we look for someone we can trust – someone proven, who comes highly recommended and is already on our side.

YOU CONTROL MY BUSINESS.

I know that I must earn your future referrals, so I aim to exceed your expectations. I have a vested interest in making sure that you are completely satisfied at the end of our transaction together. I want you to be so “fired-up” that you can’t wait to tell your friends and family about me and the fantastic service you received!

When you come across an opportunity, I’d appreciate you referring me to great people like yourself, who would benefit from the excellent service and personal attention I provide.

SERVICE THAT CONTINUES AFTER THE SALE.

I devote myself to serving the needs of my clients before, during and after each sale. Instead of disappearing after the closing, you can expect me to keep in touch. I will send you valuable information each month, and will also call from time to time just to check in and see if you need anything.