The National Association of Realtors has released their annual report of Home Buyers and Home Sellers.  There’s some interesting information here that we felt was pertinent and worthy of sharing. We’ll cover this in two parts.  First will be the Home Buyers.

• So The first thing I noticed here was that 78% of non-home owners believe that homeownership is a good financial decision.  Not only do I agree, but we can back this up with substantial data.  You can google “Homeowners vs Renters net worth” or you can take my research at face value.  Homeowner’s net worth is 45 times greater than renters.  That’s a big number.  Simply put, homeownership is a form of “forced savings” Every time you pay your mortgage, you’re contributing to your net with.  Every time you pay your rent, you’re contributing to your landlords net worth. 

• 33% of home buyers in 2019 were first-time buyers.  Their typical age was 47.  So, seems crazy that back when I started selling real estate 2 decades ago, the average age of a first time home buyer was 27.  It’s moved back 20 years…I think, in part, buyers are susceptible to carrying more debt nowadays.  More debt from credit cards, vehicles, student loans, etc…I’d say we could take some lessons from our predecessors in putting off some of the “I want it now” by asking ourselves, “do I need it now”?  I also think it’s important based upon the first NAR statistic that we focus on getting a home sooner rather than later.  Fix your monthly payment, while rent goes up, mortgages do not.  

• 52% of home buyers hired an agent primarily to help them with find the right home.

• 89% of buyers who purchased a home used a real estate agent or broker, an estimated 6% bought from a friend or relative.  I’m not surprised, in this challenging market it pays to have a real estate professional guide you through the home buying process.  A full time real estate professional not only helps you find homes that match your specific needs quickly, they are experts in navigating the negotiation process and guiding the transaction from contract to close. They also have access to professional vendors that can assist with things like mortgages, insurance, repairs, flooring, paint, you get the point. 

• 90% of buyers would use their agent again or recommend their agent to others.  We thank you for that, as referrals have always been the lifeblood of our business. 

• Buyers typically searched for 10 weeks and looked at a median of 9 homes before they purchased a home.  We’ve been pretty fortunate on The Stern Team, as our systems are so specific and since we have buyer’s only agents, our average buyer looked at 5 homes before they found their perfect home.

• Finally, 75% of Non-owners believe homeownership is part of their “American Dream.”

They’re right. I’ve been saying it for decades.  Every day I wake up excited to be in the American dream business.  Nothing more gratifying than delivering keys to a first time home buyer, attending their house warming parties and watching them turn a house into a home.