Is Buying a Home A Good Investment?

According to NAR (National Association of Realtors) eight out of every 10 buyers still consider the purchase of a home to be a good investment. It's interesting to note that 87 percent of young homeowners ( age 33 and younger,) feel this as opposed to a much lower percentage (74%) of older homeowners (age 68 and above.) Older buyers are much more likely to be trading down to a smaller, less expensive type of property and many are opting out of home ownership altogether in favor of renting. About 12 percent of all recent buyers had delayed their home purchase due to outstanding debt...... Student debt being the major factor in delaying home ownership for the largest group of recent buyers commonly known as the Millennials, Gen Y or Gen Next. About 31 % of new home buyers were born between 1980 and 1995. Given that Millennials are the largest generation in history after the baby boomers, there is potential for strong demand for homes as this generation is known to  aspier to the long-term investment aspect of home ownership. However, the challenges of tight credit, affordability and hight debt loads will limit the capacty of young people in what they choose to own. 

Millenialls are more likely to buy in an urban or central city area and place importance on energy eficency, landscaping and community features. All start their search online, and do huge amount of research before contacting an agent to assist in showing them around. They quickly lose patience with agents who can't answer their list of questions and move on to another who can. They look for agents able to communicate in their style via texts, facebook instant messaging etc., even emails are becoming a thing of the past. It's most important for them to gain instant information from a listing as they drive by it. Many are using apps to get their information and if the listing doesn't show up correctly, they typically move onto one that does. Thus it is important to ensure that each listing is mobile friendly. Something to ask your Realtor if they are able to provide when listing your home perhaps?

The 2014 NAR Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends study is posted at 

http://www.realtor.org/reports/home-buyer-and-seller-generational-trends

orignally posted at Is Buying a Home a Good Investment?