The main determinants of the demand for housing are demographic. However other factors like income, price of housing, cost and availability of credit, consumer preferences, investor preferences, price of substitutes and price of compliments all play a role.
According to The Observer[1], around 63% of homes in the USA were bought using Buying Agents (or, as they are known there, Buyers agents) whilst the figure in the UK was closer to 1%. However, as the Short Sale British property market booms, the figure is rising dramatically[citation needed].