DONNA MOY-BRUNO
Not surprised by findings

Real estate agents who speak Spanish may have an edge over their colleagues. According to a recent survey conducted in Texas, Hispanic homebuyers reported that they preferred to work with a real estate agent who speaks their own language.

Entitled “Home Buying Among Ethnic Groups,” the survey examined the attitudes and expectations of Hispanic, Asian, white and black homebuyers when it comes to professional real estate services.

More than the other ethnic groups surveyed, Hispanics told researchers that they felt uncomfortable handling business transactions in English. They also had the least experience with real estate agents and with homeownership, and were the most likely to have never used an agent to buy or sell a home. In fact, the survey showed that Hispanics were more likely to first consult a family member, such as a parent, when seeking advice or information on real estate purchases.

The survey of 4,000 Texans was commissioned by the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, which is a nonprofit agency funded by the state’s real estate licensees. Since Hispanics are the fastest-growing ethnic group in America, the survey included an over-sampling of that ethnic group.

The findings didn’t come as much of surprise to Donna Moy-Bruno, an American-born Chinese real estate agent who works in the Framingham office of ERA Key Realty Services.

“The survey is very similar to a lot of information I’ve been reading over the last couple of years,” said Moy-Bruno, who took a diversity course sponsored by the National Association of Realtors a few years ago that included similar information.

In the MetroWest region where she works, Moy-Bruno said there is a growing population of Brazilians, and many of them are more comfortable working with Portuguese-speaking real estate professionals and lenders. Moy-Bruno, who speaks Spanish and some Portuguese, feels that coming from a multilingual family has helped her in her dealings with foreign-born consumers.

“I feel very comfortable working with the Spanish-speaking buyers,” she said.

While the survey can help real estate agents understand how people from various ethnic backgrounds view real estate services, Moy-Bruno said it’s critical that Realtors avoid generalities.

“The survey makes people more aware but … they should be careful of using the survey as gospel,” she said.

Challenging Concept

Nancy Edmond, who is the chairwoman of the International Council of Realtors, said real estate agents must be educated in different ethnic customs and beliefs because the number of foreign-born first-time homebuyers in Massachusetts is increasing.

According to U.S. Census information, the minority population in the Bay State grew 111 percent in the 1990s.

“So many people of a variety of ethnicities are buying houses,” said Edmond, a Concord Realtor who has helped foreign-born clients in the past. “What we’re trying to teach our members is that international real estate is really local.”

In the Texas survey, blacks were more likely to have high opinions of real estate agents and more likely to think using an agent was a good idea. Unlike the Hispanics who were questioned in the survey, the black respondents said they first consult a broker or agent when they need real estate advice, and then parents.

But both black and Hispanic respondents reported that they thought it was hard to qualify for a mortgage loan. More than half of the Hispanics surveyed believed it was difficult to qualify for a mortgage, and they were less likely than other groups to consider the homebuying process easy.

Trying to obtain a mortgage and understanding the concept of credit histories can be challenging for new immigrants, particularly people who are accustomed to dealing only with cash, said Moy-Bruno. In her experience, that’s been one of the toughest challenges of working with foreign-born clients, she noted.

Said Edmond, “There are some ethnic groups who don’t believe in mortgages.”

Asians who responded to the survey had positive views of real estate agents, and relied on their advice and information. They reported feeling comfortable with the overall homebuying process, according to the survey. They are also willing to pay more than their current rent to own a home and were more likely than the other ethnic groups surveyed to buy a home in the next few years.

Whites also think that most aspects of the homebuying process are easy, according to the survey, but reported that they had the most difficulty finding an agent with whom they were comfortable. Whites were deemed in the survey as the least likely to buy a home in the next few years.

Aglaia Pikounis may be reached at apikounis@thewarrengroup.com.