Tour of Affordable Homes works for us!

by Jim Newell

We were very pleased with the results of the Indianapolis Star’s Tour of Affordable Homes this past Sunday.  A special expanded edition of their Sunday Homefinder section offered details on nearly 300 Indianapolis-area homes for sale under $175,000.  On top of that, there were several related articles – from Help in Finding an Affordable Home to the Indianapolis Community Housing Development Authority to Life After the Tax Credit.

Why did we like it?

First – since Carpenter’s average home sale price matches the area’s average, we have a much greater share of that under-$175k market.  Our agents dominated the listings within the special affordable homes section.  Of course our company got some nice exposure from it, but more importantly our home sellers had another chance to have their home noticed and considered by potential buyers.

Second – The Star did a great job of driving eyeballs to the section.  Our 200+ open houses received a nice bump in exposure.  No, they weren’t necessarily home buyers in the market now, but this type of editorial might push more of them into the market, and our open houses saw some additional traffic because of it.  To quote a great film: “This is the kind of spontaneous publicity – your name in print – that makes people!” (Hint: “He hates these cans!”)

I digress.  Finally – As the market continues to struggle, anything the media and we in the business can do to communicate the value of buying a home right now has got to help.  Interest rates – historically low.  Home prices – very affordable.  Inventory – plenty to choose from.  Sellers – motivated.  Somewhat of a perfect storm … that more people should be taking advantage of.

Posted by: Jim Newell

Comments are closed.