Millennials

Young buyers remain optimistic about buying a home in the next year

The share of people expecting to buy a home in the next year fell for the second consecutive quarter, according to the National Association of Home Buyers. However, millennials were still active in the market as many sought to purchase their first home.

According to the latest Housing Trends Report from the NAHB, 14 percent of the 15,412 prospective buyers included in the poll said they expect to purchase a home within the next 12 months. This result, representing the second quarter of 2018, was down from 17 percent in the first quarter and 24 percent in the fourth quarter of 2017.

Sixty-one percent of those expecting to buy said they were looking to purchase their first home. This was up from the previous quarter, when just 45 percent were firsttime buyers.

Younger buyers were most likely to plan a home purchase, with 22 percent of millennials looking to buy a home within the next 12 months. Fourteen percent of Generation Xers, 8 percent of baby boomers, and 3 percent of seniors had the same plans.

Seventy-seven percent of millennials said they were looking to buy their first home. Nearly half of Generation Xers—49 percent—also self-reported as first-time buyers, along with 34 percent of baby boomers.

Among all potential buyers, 39 percent were looking for an existing home and 21 percent were looking for a newly built home. Forty percent of potential buyers said they were looking at both types of homes.

Forty-nine percent said they were already in the process of actively trying to buy a home. This share included 51 percent of millennials, 49 percent of Generation Xers, and 46 percent of baby boomers who said they were looking to purchase a home within the next year.

Over half—53 percent—said they had been looking for a home for three or more months. Generation Xers were most likely to have been searching for this amount of time, with 59 percent in the midst of a search for at least three months. Fifty-three percent of millennials and 48 percent of baby boomers had also been searching for this amount of time.

Sixty-nine percent of respondents expected that it would be more difficult or about as difficult to find a home within the near future. Twenty percent said they thought it would be easier to find a home. Millennials were slightly more optimistic, with 22 percent expecting an easier home search compared to 18 percent of Generation Xers and 17 percent of baby boomers.

Sixty-three percent said there had been no improvement in housing inventory in the previous three months, while 29 percent said more homes were available. Cost was a more pressing concern, with 77 percent of respondents saying they could afford fewer than half the homes on the market in their search area. This included 80 percent of millennials, 74 percent of Generation Xers, and 73 percent of baby boomers.

However, the lack of preferred home features was a slightly more pressing issue among potential buyers who hadn't been able to find a home in the past three months. Forty-five percent said this was the reason they had not yet purchased a home, while 43 percent said they had been unable to find an affordable home.

Forty-one percent of potential buyers said they hadn't found a home in their preferred neighborhood. Twenty-four percent said they were outbid whenever they made an offer.

Fifty-five percent of respondents said they would keep up their search if they aren't