The 2009 National Association of REALTORS Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers Highlights
Characteristics of Home Buyers
- Forty-seven percent of recent home buyers were first-time buyers.
- The typical first-time home buyer was 30 years old, while the typical repeat buyer was 48 years old.
- The 2008 median household income of buyers was $73,100. The median income was $61,600 among first-time buyers and $88,100 among repeat buyers.
- Twenty-one percent of recent home buyers were single females, and 10 percent were single males.
- For one-third of recent home buyers, the primary reason for the recent home purchase was a desire to own a home.
Characteristics of Homes Purchased
- New home purchases were at the lowest level in eight years—down to 18 percent of all recent home purchases.
- The typical home purchased was 1,800 square feet in size and was built in 1991.
- Seventy-eight percent of home buyers purchased a detached single- family home.
- The median price of home purchased was $210,000 in the Northeast, $158,000 in the Midwest, $175,000 in the South, and $240,000 in the West.
- When considering the purchase of a home, commuting costs were considered very or somewhat important by 78 percent of buyers.
the home searCh ProCess
- For more than one-third of home buyers, the first step in the home-buying process was looking online for properties.
- Nine in ten home buyers and 94 used the Internet to search for homes.
- Real estate agents were viewed as a very useful information source by 81 percent of buyers who used an agent while searching for a home.
- The typical home buyer searched for 12 weeks and viewed 12 homes.
Home Buying and Real Estate Professionals
- Seventy-seven percent of buyers purchased their home through a real estate agent or broker.
- Ten percent of buyers purchased a home in foreclosure, up from 3 percent in 2008.
- Forty-four percent of buyers found their agent through a referral from a friend or family member.
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