Can Homebuying be Based on a Cultural Reason?

Recently I heard from a seasoned real estate broker that only 18-20% of homebuyers listed schools being the number one factor of their homebuying search. If we focus on the data of the Chinese population in the US, the percentage is far higher than the average US population. This phenomenon corresponds not only to homebuyers with college degrees but also to less-educated Chinese Americans. If a realtor sells a home to a Chinese homebuyer who later finds out that the location falls outside of the district of a well reputable high school, that homebuyer will most surely move. Although the National Association of Realtors reports that 74% of buyers would use their real estate agent again after purchasing a home, this Chinese homebuyer may not use you again, having had to move twice. The cultural reason is that Confucian principles run generations deep. One proverbial story tells how a single mom with her only child moved three times until she found the right neighborhood for her son. (For more, look up Mencius’ Mother Moves Three Times.) Most Chinese may not remember the exact centuries’ old story, but they know education is an important enough reason to move.


Image from  https://pxhere.com

Image from https://pxhere.com

About Author

yvonne.liu.wolf

Yvonne Wolf was born in Taiwan and educated in the U.S. and Europe. She has extensive experience living and working internationally (Denmark and Japan). She is fluent in English, Mandarin, and Danish, and has studied Japanese, Spanish, and Greek. Between work and personal travel, she has visited more than 20 countries and well-traveled within the U.S. and Canada. She has worked with organizations and business executives focusing on communication strategies working with Chinese and East Asian partners. Among her many skills is mediating across cultural misunderstandings.