Market Trends

Short List

Short List

Palm pilots

Increasingly for REALTORS®, business gets done on a mobile device. The 2013–2014 REALTOR® Technology Survey finds that 94 percent of REALTORS® use mobile devices to communicate with clients, and they spend a median of 44 percent of their time corresponding with or doing work for their clients via their mobile devices.

Most popular smartphone operating systems among REALTORS®

Blackberry 3%
Android 36%
iOS 52%
Other/None 9%

The survey finds that brokers spent a median of $1,410 on technology for their real estate business last year, up from $1,122 in 2012, while agents spent a median of $848, up slightly from $822 in 2012.

Social media is now an established part of most REALTORS’® business plans: 91 percent say they use social media; 70 percent say they use social media to build relationships and network; 64 percent say they use it for marketing and generating leads. The most frequently used social platforms were Facebook, used by 77 percent of respondents, followed by LinkedIn, used by 75 percent.

“REALTORS® tend to find the most value in technologies that allow them to conduct business quickly, conveniently and on the go,” says Mark Lesswing, NAR senior vice president and chief technology officer. “Embracing new technologies and online resources is a vital part of how REALTORS® identify, market and sell homes and guarantee that they are meeting their clients’ needs.”