A survey conducted by Move Inc., which operates home-search Web sites including Realtor.com, found that the average household spends about $9,000 on products and services directly linked to a move.
The 2006 Mover Survey, which examined about 40 purchase categories, also found that about half of the moving-related spending is for a variety of household goods and services, including home decorating, improvement and repair. Movers spend about 60 percent more on such purchases than nonmovers, according to the survey.
The rest of the moving-related expenditures are spent when switching to new merchants for services like banking, cable or satellite TV, telephone service and Internet access, the company reported, and movers also switch to new grocery stores, insurance companies, auto mechanics and pharmacies.
Home buyers and renters in the pre-move and post-move cycle spend approximately $170 billion annually on move-related products and services.
Many buying decisions were clustered around the two weeks immediately before and immediately after a move, according to the Move Inc. survey. Most respondents reported purchasing major appliances, home electronics, furniture, window treatments, bedding and linens, as well as home repair, and lawn, garden and pest control supplies, within the first two weeks of moving into a new home.
In addition to surveying thousands of consumers, Move also spoke to home improvement retailers, utilities providers, general retailers and other companies in preparing the report. “Many companies whose products and services are fundamental to the move do not target consumers at critical decision-making points in the move cycle,” according to the report. “In fact, most of these companies market to a mass audience versus a targeted reach, ignoring a segment of the market that could offer a significant return on their investment.”
Move Inc. operates Move.com, Moving.com, Realtor.com and SeniorHousingNet.com, among other sites.
