The housing market has been hit in a big way by the millennial generation, who have entered it with force recently. For years now, the millennial generation had been seemingly uninterested with owning homes, but for the first time they make up the majority of home purchasers.
According to a millennial real estate agent, Nick Sakkis, the reason why this took so long to occur is really tied to the lifestyles and employment options that the generation had.
“I think Millennials have a lot of options that the GenX-ers or Boomers didn’t have. They can work remotely so the idea of putting down roots in one place might not appeal to a lot of them, so that’s where the disconnect comes in.”
But that appears to no longer be the case with the older members of the generation, who are no longer restrained by the burdens they had early in their professional lives. A lot of their resources had been tied into their education and career until now, and financial analysts say not to underestimate that. It’ll have a lot of impact on the power of their purchasing and in a good way.
Greg McBride, Bankrate.com’s chief financial analyst, is one of the voices speaking about the power of the millennial real estate buyer.
“A lot of those Millennials who were reluctant to buy because of student loan debt or career mobility will look in their 30s and – by virtue of those investments in education and career early on – will be able to skip right over the starter home.”
So, while the big bank results state otherwise, the housing market could see an exponential increase in the coming years as millennials obtain a little more financial freedom, especially amongst military members finally leaving duty.
Veterans who’ve served for a period of time longer than six months get access to special VA home loans that require no mortgage insurance and give 100% financing options. So, not only will older millennials have the benefit of an education, but also potentially great housing options from the armed services, too.
As the millennial generation begins to settle down and have families of their own, the investments made in their future are starting to show a good return. If this will drive the housing market out of its slump has yet to be determined.