Sales Time Estimation Methodology Through Survival Models

Authors

Abstract

Knowing in detail those factors that are most relevant to the probability of selling homes can be of utmost importance, among other things, as it is a long-term investment. After identifying a series of blocks that mark the evolution of their sale, such as the internal characteristics of the property in question, its location, its degree of overpricing and, above all, a real interest on the part of the buyer, a novel study is presented that models the probability of selling properties over time using machine learning techniques applied to survival problems, achieving C-index values of 76% and 72% in chalets and apartments, respectively. The methodological process has been tested in the capital of Spain, Madrid, based on data collected from the country's main market platform during the 2018-2019 period, weighted according to official information, but the methodology is scalable to any municipality. Not only sellers, buyers or intermediaries can benefit from this contribution, but also public agents in order to make decisions focused on design or prevention in the area of housing.

Keywords:

housing market, price and valuation of the home, survival analysis applied to home sales, time-dependent selling probability, time on market (TOM)

Author Biographies

David Sánchez-Cabrera, Universidad Católica Santa Teresa de Jesús de Ávila

Senior data scientist en Bankinter. Profesor en Universidad Católica Santa Teresa de Jesús de Ávila

Julio González-Arias, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia

Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia

David Rey-Blanco, Idealista

Chief Data Officer en Idealista. Profesor en The Valley Business School.

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