• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, May 27, 2005

Nielsen//NetRatings reported that the continued interest in home and rental properties compelled 21.6 million Web surfers, or 15 percent of the active Internet population, to visit a real estate or apartment site during April 2005, spiking 26 percent from 17.1 million visitors six months ago.

Though the overall jump in visitors came from all income brackets to real estate and apartment sites during April 2005, lower-income households earning up to $25K showed the most significant growth with a million potential home buyers and renters viewing a real estate or apartment site last month, marking a 47 percent leap during the past six months. 

More than six million visitors, or the bulk of real estate surfers, earned a household income between $50-$75K jumping 32 percent from November 2004. Households with income of more than $150K rounded out the top three fastest growing income groups.

The top 10 real estate and apartment sites collectively grew 54 percent from 8.2 million during November 2004 to 12.6 million visitors during April 2005, driven by today's hot real estate market.

Realtor.com, which boasted more than two million listings, attracted the largest audience with close to six million unique visitors, compared to second-place Home Gain, which drew more than three million unique visitors in April 2005,

ForSaleByOwner.com drew nearly a million unique visitors, jumping 142 percent from six months prior, suggesting consumers are taking home selling into their own hands.

Iris Cumberbatch, senior financial services analyst, Nielsen//NetRatings, says "Savvy Internet users are leveraging online resources for real estate purchasing and selling. Home sellers are using local online classifieds to sell their homes, and home buyers are accessing sites such as Realtor.com to conduct their own property research. Consumers surfing the Web have more direct and better access to real estate property information than they had previously..."