The non-Internet home buyer

Posted on May 1, 2007 by Cari McGee in Buyers

…seems like an endangered species, but they’re out there.

I got a call the other day from a guy on the west side of the state (Redmond, to be exact), who might want to move over here.  He’s retired, no family, nothing that would draw him here or keep him here, except for the excellent 300 days of sun we boast.

So, I find out what he would like (very broad criteria…3 bedrooms, 2 baths, style doesn’t matter, lot size doesn’t matter, price-wise he’d like to stay under $300,000)  and ask him to narrow it down after finding over 300 possibilities!  We narrowed it down to a rambler with a 3-car garage in Richland.  Phew.  Only 60 houses found.

But here’s the thing.  He doesn’t like computers (in Redmond?!), so he wants me to send him the listings on paper.  Unusual, but I did it.

Then I got a call today.  He needed some info on our community college and WSU Tri-Cities, plus he wanted to find out what kind of part-time job he could procure when he moved here.  All of which can be completely researched to death on the Internet!

So, I called him back with appropriate phone numbers.  I couldn’t help but compare the situation to something I did for a client moving here from another state.  I sent her five links to local programs, and listings galore, because she could research all she wants on this incredible tool called the Internet.

Of course, both clients are valuable to me.  Of course both clients are worthy of time and effort.  But I can’t help but wonder if the non-Internet home buyer is at a disadvantage, simply because there is so much info out there, and I cannot possibly share EVERYTHING with him!