iProperty.com Survey confirms more and more Asian property investors using the Internet as the medium of choice in their property search
February 5, 2008 – The iProperty.com Group, Asia’s leading network of online property portals owned by IPGA Limited (ASX: IPP), recently concluded its Asia Property Trends Survey, which shows that the Internet is now the favourite medium for property hunting, across Asia.
The survey findings clearly demonstrate that gone are the days when newspapers and signboards were the main channels property investors in Asia use in hunting for choice properties. The global shift towards online property classifieds, evident in more matured markets like Australia and the United Kingdom over the past few years, is now evidently taking Asia by storm.
51% of the 2,066 survey respondents revealed that the Internet is the first medium they turn to when embarking on their property search; compared to 23% and 10% who indicated newspaper classifieds and property agents respectively. As many as 87% indicated that they use the Internet to search for properties on sale.
Asian property hunters utilise the Internet extensively for a variety of other purposes: To research property market trends (55%), read property news (51%), research developers (48%), research financing options (32%) and search for property agents (20%).
When asked why the Internet is their preferred medium for conducting their property hunt, respondents ranked the following reasons in descending order: Speed and convenience (81%), 24x7 availability (70%), ability to view properties through photos (62%), better way to get updated on the latest properties for sale (53%) and better selection (43%).
Indeed, these findings corroborate international consultancy firm, Frost & Sullivan’s opinion in 2007 - that the online real estate listings market is one of the world’s fastest growing market segments, with global comparables enjoying top line growth well in excess of 75% per year, for each of the last five years, as well as an explosion in the number of users and advertisers.
From the success that the iProperty.com Group has enjoyed with its network of portals in Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and the Philippines, it looks like online property advertising in Asia is poised to replicate the tremendous growth enjoyed by the Australian and the United Kingdom markets in recent years. With strong growth across Asian markets, coupled with the fact that this continent has the world’s largest Internet user base, iProperty.com believes that there is tremendous growth potential in the Asian online property sector in the years to follow.
About IPGA Limited (www.ipgalimited.com)
Listed on the Australian Securities Exchange, IPGA Limited (ASX:IPP) owns Asia’s leading network of property websites under the iProperty.com umbrella brand. The Company is focused on developing and operating Internet-based real estate portals with other complementary offerings in Asian markets. It currently operates consumer and business online property portals in the markets of Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and Philippines, with a Heads of Agreement in place to acquire an online property portal in Thailand. With further expansion planned, IPGA is continuously working to capitalise on its market-leading positions and the rapidly growing online property advertising market throughout the region.
IPGA Network of Websites:
Singapore: iProperty.com Singapore
Malaysia: iProperty.com Malaysia and iLuxury.com.my
Hong Kong: GoHome.com.hk, House18.com
Philippines: iProperty.com Philippines
About GoHome network (www.gohome.com.hk)
The GoHome network is Hong Kong’s No.1 real estate portal both in terms of number of listings and user traffic, as measured by ComScore. Over 578,000 unique users view our network’s property listings each month. The GoHome sites, which are Chinese language based but also available in English, reach over 45% of all unique Hong Kong internet users looking for property online each month, a result that is more than four and a half times better than our nearest competitor.
Since our establishment in 1999, GoHome’s purpose is to provide objective, up-to-date and useful information and services for home seekers and to provide a cost effective marketing channel for agencies and property owners to attract potential buyers and renters. In September 2001, GoHome merged with House18 to form the largest one-stop property and home related portal in Hong Kong. GoHome is now part of the iProperty.com Group.
For more information please contact:
Patrick Grove
Executive Chairman
IPGA Ltd
Mobile: (60) 12 269 4977 / (65) 96690369
Email: pg@iproperty.com
Cynthia Chan
Company Secretary
IPGA Ltd
Tel: (613) 9691 4900
Fax: (613) 9600 1500
Email: cchan@beconwood.com.au
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