Two-Bedroom, Two-Bath Bungalow in Aisle Nine

(Feb. 15) – Would you shop for a home during a milk run to the grocery store?

Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but perhaps soon, especially if you regularly push a shopping cart past a real estate outlet in the supermarket you visit several times a week.

That's just what RE/MAX of New England is hoping – that consumers will add a home purchase to their grocery list now that the company is rolling out real estate offices in some Stop & Shop stores in New England.

And, with many supermarkets already outfitted with banking services and coffee shops, the company might just be on to something.

"If you are a real estate broker, one of the things you want to do is to be the most visible broker in town. It makes a lot of sense to stick a real estate office in a supermarket where people go once or twice a week," said Peter Miller, head of the independent real estate firm OurBroker.com in Silver Spring, Md.

An exclusive five-year agreement between Stop & Shop Supermarket Co. of Quincy, Mass., and RE/MAX calls for 17 tiny real estate offices in supermarkets located in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New Hampshire – the first time a major real estate brand has teamed up with a large consumer retailer to house real estate offices in their retail spaces, according to RE/MAX.

Along with the smart location choice, the real estate company's timing is also on the money.

Until the third quarter of 2009, home prices had been falling in New England, year over year, every quarter since the third quarter of 2006. The biggest year-over-year price losses occurred in 2008, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency's Home Price Index.

But those depressed prices and the year-end rush on the first-time home buyer tax credit led to rebounding sales in the region.

In November 2009, New England's single-family home sales were up year over year across the region from 56.3 percent in Augusta, Maine, to 67.7 percent in Hartford, Conn., compared with a lackluster 2008, the company said.

"Sure, when they come in to pick up their groceries they won't sporadically decide to purchase a home, but certainly we will be there to answer questions they may have about the buying or selling process, about the available government tax credits or to help discuss what the best timing would be to put their home on the market," said Jay Hummer, executive vice president of RE/MAX of New England.

"Simply put, these locations will allow people to get to know our expert RE/MAX agents and form a relationship, so when it's time to buy or sell a home they will come back to us," Hummer said.

Roland Aberg, a principal with Hart Howerton, a San Francisco master planning firm, says that he, like other consumers, generally finds a real estate agent through referrals, not by walking into a real estate office.

Consumers typically seek referrals from friends, family, co-workers, professionals and others they trust who've had a successful business experience with the agent.

"I'm reacting cold to this, but I wouldn't just go in and stop because it's there," he said.

However, Aberg, a master planner who knows the visual appeal of well-planned spaces, said if RE/MAX takes advantage of the storefront aspect and showcases listings in an attractive way, the company could get window shoppers to cross the threshold.

"It could stimulate people to think about buying. When you are window shopping and something catches your attention, you like to go in and find out more about it," said Aberg. "Depending upon how it's done, this could mean a lot of exposure and allow people to see things they wouldn't ordinarily see. I think this is quite an interesting approach. It's a way to get a product out there in a different way than in a newspaper, online or any other way."

The company expects to enjoy both the foot traffic of double coupon days and relatively lower rent than a traditional office.

Hummer said the small offices would range in size from 200 to 400 square feet. Still, Hummer said several sales agents could be based out of each location.

"Clearly, the overwhelming majority (of supermarket shoppers) will not be interested in real estate," said Miller, author of "The Common-Sense Mortgage" (McGraw-Hill, 1999). "But an overwhelming amount of traffic in a supermarket is also not interested in oatmeal, but it's there because there is some interest and they ultimately do sell lots of oatmeal."