Homebuyers taking a leap of faith and relocating to dream destinations

Sellers are moving further from their original homes this summer, according to a recent Coldwell Banker Real Estate Move Meter report. Based on traffic to the company’s website, the average search covered 1,015 miles, about the distance of New York to Miami. In addition, the report highlighted search interests on a state-by-state basis — important information for brokers and agents marketing their listings.

“We’re seeing a strong interest and desire in Americans and homeowners to take a leap of faith and relocate to live in their dream destinations this summer,” says David Marine, CMO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.

Marine noted that 82% of all Move Meter searches to date involved out-of-state moves. Only about 13% of all searches involved driving 100 miles from an owner’s current home. Nearly half of the searches (42%) involved moves that were 500 to 1,500 miles.

Here are other summer search findings from the report:

• Florida was the No. 1 state in the Move Meter interest index with one out of seven of all searches, and was first on the list for prospects from New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Illinois and Minnesota.

Sarasota, Miami, Naples, and Tampa were the most popular searched cities. When Floridians look to move, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia and New York were top choices, and about 25% of Floridian searches involved staying in-state.

• California was the second-most searched state, with San Diego the No. 3 ranked city destination. About 20% of California searches involved in-state moves, with Texas, Florida, Tennessee and Washington the top states for outward-bound interest. As for non-California cities, Austin, Dallas, Seattle and Nashville had the greatest move appeal.

• Third on the list was Texas, with Austin topping the chart as the most-searched city destination. While 27% of Texans searched in-state cities, the second most popular destination was California with 10% of all Texans’ searches.

• North Carolina, Tennessee and South Carolina ranked fourth through sixth on the list. Nashville, Memphis, Charlotte and Chapel Hill were top cities for inbound and outbound search interest.

• Overall, Massachusetts had the greatest proportion of searchers considering staying in state – about 40% of all searches.

• On a regional basis, Midwesterners and Northeasterners were generally looking to warmer destinations in Southeast, according to the Coldwell Banker report. In contrast, residents in the Southeast, Southwest and West all had higher likelihoods of staying in their respective regions.

In keeping with those trends, the report highlighted the top searched city for residents in several states. For instance, Charleston, South Carolina, was tops for Connecticut residents; Denver was first for Washington residents and Jacksonville was the No. 1 choice for searches from Virginia.