Early spring is peak home-shopping season in most years, a time when sellers list homes on the market in droves hoping to take advantage of the increased competition from buyers shaking off the winter doldrums. But a new Zillow® analysis shows that new listings dropped significantly this March and early April as the coronavirus pandemic took hold.
However new listings were actually up or flat in 12 of the 35 largest U.S. metros, led by Phoenix (up 18.3%), Atlanta (up 15.6%), Sacramento (up 13.7%) and Minneapolis-St. Paul (up 13.7%). Still, gains in each of these 12 metros were a minimum of 14.5 percentage points below average gains during this period in 2018 and 2019.
Buyers, sellers and their agents have begun to change their behaviors as they adapt to public health requirements.
Virtual tours (otherwise known as 3D tours) use specialized equipment to create a virtual, 3D model of a property. After the model is created from scanning the home, it is processed into a virtual tour that can be viewed using a smartphone, tablet, computer, or even virtual reality goggles.
Zillow reports the number of 3D Home tours on Zillow in March was 188% higher than the previous month, and Zillow goes on to say that virtual tours created the last week of March jumped by more than 400% compared to a typical week in February.
John Backer, owner of Southern AZ Virtual Tours (SouthernAZVirtualTours.com), has been creating virtual tours since October 2018. Backer shared, “Since Covid-19 restricted individuals’ movements, Realtors have been anxious to bring this technology to their listing clients to reach the largest number of buyers possible, while helping to keep their clients healthy.”
Zillow’s numbers reinforce what Backer says – reporting that in March, listings with 3D Home tours received about 50% more site visitors and were saved about 60% more frequently.
Getting your home in front of as many potential buyers as possible has always been a key way to sell your home for the highest amount possible. Using virtual tours could be an important way to continue to reach potential buyers in the era of Covid-19.
| Metropolitan Area | Year-Over-Year Change in New Listings – March 1 |
Year-Over-Year Change in New Listings – April 5 |
Change in New Listings from March 1 to April 5 |
Change in Total Listings from March 1 to April 5 |
| United States | 17.3% | -27.1% | -19.0% | 2.5% |
| New York, NY | 14.1% | -56.6% | -49.1% | -0.5% |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | 8.7% | -27.9% | -19.1% | -0.6% |
| Chicago, IL | 11.9% | -38.8% | -19.8% | -1.9% |
| Dallas-Fort Worth, TX | 25.2% | -17.2% | -18.0% | -1.1% |
| Philadelphia, PA | 12.2% | -52.7% | -42.6% | -0.7% |
| Houston, TX | 6.8% | -8.7% | 1.9% | 3.9% |
| Washington, DC | 15.7% | -23.3% | -4.8% | 12.8% |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL | 10.0% | -22.8% | -30.7% | -1.6% |
| Atlanta, GA | 12.5% | 10.2% | 15.6% | 9.0% |
| Boston, MA | 24.5% | -46.6% | -26.2% | 7.0% |
| San Francisco, CA | 18.8% | -36.4% | -38.0% | -7.9% |
| Detroit, MI | 39.0% | -64.6% | -61.8% | -3.5% |
| Riverside, CA | 4.5% | -11.7% | -8.7% | -0.3% |
| Phoenix, AZ | 5.6% | -0.9% | 18.3% | 10.5% |