Housing.com-Makaan.com study finds more women taking lead in renting and home-buying decisions

National, November 16, 2018:Men and women use and process information somewhat differently. The way they evaluate and weigh their decisions based on facts is interesting. A recent study conducted by leading online real estate portal Housing.com and Makaan.com suggest that there is a significant increase in the number of women users who are actively researching for a property online. The study attempted to look at the behavioural differences between men and women when they are looking at property online.

The study processed data collected from its users’ activity across the two platforms- Housing.com and Makaan.com. Here’s what the study revealed:

Leading the way

It is interesting to note that women are actively taking the lead when searching for a rental property. In 2016, women users accounted for 51 per cent of the sessions online while men accounted for 49 per cent. By 2018, women account for 54 per cent of online sessions across the two platforms, and the share of men in this regard has dwindled to 46 per cent.

Even when searching for property to buy, the share of women audience is continuously increasing. The share of sessions initiated by women on the two sites has jumped to 46% in 2018, up from 40% in 2016.

Given the numbers which are reasonably siding in favour of women, it is indicative that women may be more conscious of what lifestyle they wish to settle into and may even be better decision makers.

The age factor

Female users’ sessions were more prominent in the 18-34 age group category. While the exact number may have varied across the two platforms, that is, Housing.com and Makaan.com, the conclusion is plain and simple. The number of women browsing the websites for information was higher than that of men across platforms. However, the dominant age category is that of 25-34-year-olds who form the bulk of users at a little over 55 per cent across all platforms. Here again, there are as more women users than men.

One can conclude that with increasing financial independence, women increasingly are making property-related decisions both for independent dwelling options and even for family homes.

Chasing information

Women are on the hunt, clearly. As compared to men, women contribute to 20% more sessions when looking for a rental property and are 10% more likely to return to the site for more information. It is clear that women are more information hungry and take several sessions and visits to analyse before they arrive at a concrete decision concerning the property. Women are also quicker in taking a decision and moving on to the next alternative if they don’t like what they see. On average, a woman user spends 7% less time per visit to a site and about 8% less time on a particular page. They are quick to browse information and are clear about their needs.

Women also look at slightly more number of pages than men when looking for a rental property. Women users hunt for meaningful information and take informed action thereafter. Women thereby make for better researchers because they dig deeper.

Eye for detail

The study reveals that women may be better researchers given their eye for detail. About 48 per cent of women browse through pictures of the property they are interested in as against only 39 per cent men. Additionally, women went in for refined searches applying 3.5 filters on an average whereas men applied only 3 filters. This shows attention to detail and a discerning trait in women.

Moving closer to the transaction

Not just short-listing and selecting a rental home, women are also increasingly involved in closing transactions. As per the data, women are more likely to share their contact information with brokers and landlords for a rental property, contributing 54% of the total leads dropped for rental properties. While women may be good decision makers with an eye for detail, numbers show that they are more likely to pass on the baton to men when it comes to buying a property. Men are slightly ahead on this count, with 51% of buy leads dropped on the sites coming from men. Men do account for more enquiry to sales conversions than women but do note that there is an only a slight gap and increasingly we will see more women moving closer to the transaction and be involved in buying homes as well.

Corporate Comm India(CCI Newswire)