Inman

Compass is seeing a huge uptick in single-family home searches

Suburb, house

Search trends compiled by Compass show a significant shift in interest from densely populated urban cities to suburbs and homes with more space, Compass CEO Robert Reffkin reported Tuesday morning on CNBC.

Robert Reffkin | Photo credit: Compass

“We’re seeing a 40 percent increase in searches for single-family homes and a 7 percent decline in searches for vertical condominiums,” Reffkin said in the appearance. “We’re seeing three times as many searches for pools, two-times as many searches for outdoor space, all of this reflecting a shift in interest from densely populated urban cities to the suburbs.”

Reffkin said he believes the overall disruption to the market will last until there’s a vaccine, but the interest in real estate is rising as the curve is flattening in many markets. In the past week, new listings and in-contract listings have climbed 20 percent week-over-week.

In general, people are looking for more space, according to Reffkin. The average minimum filter in Compass home searches has gone up 10 percent.

“The big winners we’re going to see here are the suburbs directly outside of the big cities,” Reffkin said, highlighting places like Westchester County outside New York City and Marin County outside San Francisco.

“The second winner will be the second home market,” Reffkin added. “People are not going to be thinking about international travel vacations, they’re going to be focused on domestic retreats and their second homes.”

See the full appearance below:

Email Patrick Kearns