Women increasingly driving property decisions

Women are increasingly driving a bigger share of the country's real estate decisions, research suggests.

A breakdown of property searches conducted on OneRoof since it's launch show that more women than men are looking at listings.

According to OneRoof figures, 52.1 percent of property searches and property research on the site are carried out by women, while 47.9 percent are carried out by men.

It's a trend that's reflected in property discussions with New Zealand's major real estate companies, with Bayleys Real Estate observing the rise female property browsers.

Google has long noted that more women than men heading online to research items before they buy - whether that's for household goods or houses.

While few would buy a house online, sight unseen, real estate websites and property information sites such as OneRoof make it much easier for house-hunters to equip themselves for open homing or negotiating a property purchase.

Bayleys Rodney North Manager Debbie Jones says: "I find that the woman of a couple tends to do the research, not only when it comes to property but across all sorts of markets. They seem to be more active in this space and more likely to drill down into the detail. Woman peel away the layers before making decisions."

She has also observed that woman are often the instigators of life changes like buying a house, or in the case of the Rodney district, driving that lifestyle change decision. Men seem more content to stay put, and not agonise about the details or the desire for change.

Her agents have noticed that the gender of enquirers changes during the day, with more enquiry coming from men during the day, and more from women during the evening. At open homes, it tends to be the woman who leaves her mobile number as the main contact.

Bayleys Regional General Manager Eastern Bays Rachel Dovey agrees: “Women seem to be doing the initial scouting to make sure a property fits the family criteria in regard to size, style, position, school zone etc.”

When it comes to marketing to the growing number of female browsers, it’s easy to make stereotypical assumptions about what women are looking for when buying a house (the flash kitchen, a mega walk-in wardrobe), and therefore how a house should be marketed. But property marketing hasn’t changed just because more women may be seeing the listing, says Bayleys.

Ms Dovey says: "As a general rule, women in our area, which is mid to upper market, are very visual so the presentation of a property is very important. We might have a property home-staged, or partially staged with extra art, or cushions. We make sure the photography is high quality, including atmospheric images like night shots."

Property Institute of New Zealand chief executive Ashley Church hasn't noticed any gender bias when it comes to property decisions in New Zealand but he did offer that men and women may focus on different aspects of a property when they are doing research.

He says: "It really does depends on the individual. Some people tend to focus on how a property has been presented or what features it has, such as new kitchen or bathroom fittings. Other people focus on location and the ammenities a neighbourhood has to offer. Others focus on the financials."

He also notes that the investment property market is roughly split evenly between both men and women, which is a healthy sign.