Explore video walkthroughs for rentals
Video walk-throughs, short videos of homes listed for sale, have long been a popular means of marketing homes via the internet. Now with the increasing demand for rental properties, this concept has been replicated for homes available for rent.
One firm recently announced the implementation of this system. Zillow introduces video walk-throughs on rental listings, providing renters with a new and more immersive way to envision themselves in a home.
"Video walk-throughs are short videos that will give renters more information about a home's key features and special attributes than photos alone can provide," according to a news release.
"Video walk-throughs are designed to fit into the browsing behavior of renters, who are increasingly searching for homes on their smartphones. Two-thirds of traffic comes from a mobile device; on weekends it's more than 70 percent."
The report pointed out the advantages of establishing a firm time limit for each video.
"With a time limit of two minutes and no sound, video walk-throughs give renters a new way to explore the real estate market and narrow down the homes they want to tour. The format is the same for every listing, giving renters a consistent viewing experience and allowing them to more easily compare homes.
"Video walk-throughs have been tremendously popular on for-sale listings, bringing them to rentals is a natural extension," said Jeremy Wacksman, Zillow chief marketing officer.
"Video walk-throughs give renters a quick glimpse into home features that are hard to capture in photos, like how a home is laid out or how much natural light there is in the kitchen."
Q. How will the Trump election affect renters?
A. Here is a portion of a release from RentHop that addresses that subject:
"President-elect Trump has proposed many tax cuts and spending projects, and so far, little concrete plans to balance the budget increase. We can expect the nominal rent to go up, and as usual, wages are a bit stickier when the prices of everything else is increasing.
"Bottom line, you are unlikely to get a raise at work that properly matches your rent, health care, insurance and food costs, so plan ahead."
Q. What is driving the current rise in home prices?
A. One key contributor is the persistent supply shortages throughout the country. This led to slightly faster home price appreciation during the third quarter, according to the latest quarterly report by the National Association of Realtors.
The report also revealed that seven of the 10 most expensive housing markets in the U.S. are in the West, including San Jose, California, which had a median single-family home price of $1 million for the second straight quarter.
Q. Is it important to advertise a for-sale home as being an energy-efficient property?
A. Yes, particularly in certain regions. The analysis highlights a study by Zillow Real Estate. It shows energy-efficient home technology - popular with millennials and West Coast homeowners - is catching on as a trend in some of the places that need it most.
"Climate change is top-of-mind in California, and whether homeowners are reacting to environmental ethics or high energy costs, they are most likely to market energy-efficient technology when selling their homes," said Zillow chief economist Svenja Gudell.
"Between density and drought, Californians have a lot of reasons to find ways to make their homes more efficient - for the sake of the environment and their pocketbooks, too."
Q. Are mortgage applications rising?
A. No, not in recent weeks. "Mortgage applications for new homes are down 2.3 percent over the month but are up 8.3 percent compared to last year," said Lynn Fisher, vice president of Research and Economics for the Mortgage Bankers Association, in late November.
• Email Jim Woodard at storyjim@aol.com.
© 2016, Creators Syndicate