Back in 1996 there were just over 4 million internet users in the UK. Of these, only around 700,000 were searching for property, according to analysis of data from BMRB and comScore by the FindaPropetry.com research team.
Over the next eight years the internet grew but the percentage of people searching for property remained remarkably stable at around 18 per cent.
But then in 2004 it all changed. The internet population didn't rise massively – from 22,016,000 in 2003 to 23,620,000 in 2004 (+7.2 per cent) - but the percentage of people initiating a property search climbed to 27 per cent (from 18 per cent in 2003).
What changed in 2004? Two things. The housing market started to soar, and that undoubtedly drew more people to property portals, and broadband also took off in 2004.
The percentage of all internet users searching for property rose to an all time high of 31 per cent in 2006, moderated slightly in 2007 (29 per cent) and then slipped significantly to 19 per cent in 2008, as the credit crunch began to bite.
Interestingly, there's been a pick up in the percentage of property searchers since then – in the first quarter of 2009, 26% of the active internet population (which now stands at over 32 million adults) visited a property website.
Andrew Smith, FindaProperty.com's Head of Research says: "Consumers are attracted to property portals for a number of reasons; convenience, the range of properties on offer in one place and the ability to compile detailed information before contacting estate agents.
"Multiple photos, floor plans and mapping are all functionality that we now take for granted however it wasn’t until the mass take-up of broadband that property portals were able to enhance the online property search experience.
"The Internet is now the first point of call for property searchers and it’s encouraging to see consumers beginning to return to the property portals in 2009."
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