Millennials are growing up, settling down and entering the housing market even stronger in 2018.
This demographic is reaching that sweet-spot age for first-time buyers, which have historically remained around 30-31 years old. They are paying off student loan debt and they’ve become comfortable with the national increase in cost of living. All of which puts the group at an ideal spot for buying their first homes.
In the past, millennials were the
largest group of home buyers at a whopping 34 percent for the fourth consecutive year, according to
NAR’s 2017 Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends study. This is compared to the baby boomers at 30 percent of buyers.
While millennials enter the housing market at full force, real estate agents can expect to see certain trends tailored to their buyer preferences. New technology and energy efficient homes are on the radar for 2018, both aspects being pushed by the younger generations.
Millennials also rely on customer reviewers more than any generation and take project research very seriously. Searching the internet for homes has become extremely popular among this age group, as 99 percent of
millennial buyers searched online while looking for a home in 2017 and 58 percent actually found the home they ended up purchasing on their mobile devices. Real estate agents need to increase their online presence in order to stay on top of statistics like this.
Another big takeaway from millennials entering the housing market is that they do not view homeownership as something permanent. The average number of years a millennial buyer will keep his or his home before selling is six, compared to the rest of buyers at 10 years. As a real estate professional, keep in mind that millennials could be repeat clients in just a few years.
When it comes to home ownership, real estate agents should be prepared to deal with millennials in 2018 and the trends that come along with them. By increasing their presence online, their technology usage and their customer service, REALTOR®s should be able to successfully adapt to the future of millennials in real estate.