"Websites such as Rightmove and Zoopla have been central to British house-hunting habits for around two decades now, but that dominance could soon be disrupted."
Since the turn of the millennium, websites such as Rightmove and Zoopla have remained at the top of our go-to lists of home-hunting tools. However, this may change in the years to come owing to the preferences of the next generation of home-movers.
Newly released research by property communications agency, Oracle, reveals that just 28% of 18-24 year-olds cite property portals (e.g., Zoopla / Rightmove etc.) as the information source they most trust when looking for a home to rent or buy, in sharp contrast to 45% of 25-34 year-olds and 43% of 35-44 year-olds.
Oracle worked with YouGov to ask a representative sample of people what one source of information they trust most when looking for a home to buy or rent. The surprising drop-off in the 18-24 group favouring portals reflects a wider trend amongst Generation Z who tend to be wary of traditional advertising and product campaigns, instead preferring influencers, social proof and personal recommendations.
The research bears this out as around 1 in 6 (or 16%) of 18-24 year-olds surveyed were more likely to place their faith in other people's reviews and recommendations via sources such as Trustpilot significantly more than those in the older age groups (10% 45-54s and 8% 55+). Additionally, just 23% of Generation Z potential home-movers would most trust a personal interaction with an estate agent or letting agent.
Caroline Coskry, Chair of The Oracle Group, comments: “Websites such as Rightmove and Zoopla have been central to British house-hunting habits for around two decades now, but that dominance could soon be disrupted. Our research shows Generation Z place far less faith in portals than the generations that came before them, opening the door for new forms of property marketing to win their trust with tactics based around authenticity and social proof.”
The FMCG and fashion worlds have seen changes in recent years thanks to the emergence of platforms such as TikTok Marketplace and Depop which elevate Generation Z-friendly creator content, recommendations and influencer-driven selling. Trends may well signal the future direction of the property market as developers and agents look to capture the attention of younger buyers and renters.
Coskry concludes: “Understanding what sources of information people put their trust in is a vital part of how we support our property clients, and that's exactly what we set out to discover in this research. We hope that by shining a light on this forward-looking trend, the industry can prepare itself for how to reach the next generation of buyers and renters. In recent years Oracle has achieved great results for clients with influencer-driven campaigns and we fully expect this trend to continue.”
