Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Who is My Customer?


Home Land Investment Properties, Inc. specializes in single family homes in Seattle priced under the median home sales price, currently $375,000 in King County. Who is our typical buyer in this price range?

Our target buyer actually consists of two categories of buyer. One typical buyer would be a first-time homebuyer, aged 25-35, buying a starter home in a good neighborhood where they plan to stay long enough to start a family. They plan to have or have 1-2 children under the age of six-years old. They want the excitement, richness and diversity of urban living, but would like to be in a safe neighborhood with room for property value appreciation. Their favorite home is a 3 bedroom 2 bath older home of approximately 1200-1500 square feet in a good working class or better neighborhood. They love the idea of community, and the ability to walk to cultural and other amenities, including parks, trails, library, community center, stores, groceries, and other shops and businesses. They like short commutes, support public transit, but want easy access to freeways and highways. They are educated, young working professionals, most likely members of the creative class that includes knowledge workers, designers, developers, innovators, and inventors. They are attracted to the creative and technological energy of Seattle, and most likely work in downtown Seattle - or maybe across the bridge, at Microsoft. They are willing to do some cosmetic work to build sweat equity in their home.

Another typical buyer would be an investor, looking for urban fixer properties, the closer to jobs and the urban core as possible. They are looking for homes priced competitively to acquire, most likely for under $200k, that require a great deal of updating, remodeling or renovation. Their favorite home is a 3 bedroom 2 bath fixer of approximately 1200-1500 sf in a good, working class neighborhood or better. They are looking for quick cash homes to fix and flip; or homes to keep that would make great rentals. The typical investor is a young male with some construction experience aged 23- 40.

The typical seller is our first time homebuyer above, 7-10 years later. They want to get a bigger house in a better neighborhood, possibly moving to the East side for better schools.

Another typical seller has been in their home for more than ten years, and has lots of deferred maintenance, which is attractive to first-time homebuyers or investors. They do not have the resources to fix up the house, and may be upside down in their mortgage. They tend to be elderly, and facing medical or financial problems. They just want to be done with the house, tend to be highly motivated to sell, and anxious to move on with their lives.

Each of these clients are looking for solutions that help them transition to a new phase in life. Home Land Investment Properties provides solutions by facilitating real estate transactions, offering property management, or guaranteeing sales through cash purchases of these properties.

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