It’s probably not a surprise to many of us that entertainment seems to be seeping into nearly every area of our current culture and environment. Many of us are no longer satisfied with simply getting a task done, but rather we want to be entertained in the process. Perhaps we are no longer desiring simple results, but we want to be engaged— we want to be amused.

Real estate has evolved from having a need and fulfilling that need. Real estate is now entertainment. It’s not about mortgages; it’s about voyeurism, comparing ourselves to others, and a slew of other things.

Take a look at this graph depicting the amount of unique visitors to online real estate sites versus the number of total home sales. There’s an ever-increasing gap between these two paths. It’s the gap between need and amusement. And it’s a gap that demands the attention of credit unions. As an example, let’s examine one woman’s personal story, which she recently shared with the media: “I look at houses online when I own and when I rent, when I’ve just moved and when I’m pondering moving again. I wake up, open my laptop, check my email and Facebook, then click on Realtor.com.”

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