Much has been written about millennials and the generational shifts they’re causing. For example, one common misconception is that they’re eschewing home ownership in favor of renting in the urban core. But that’s just one side of the story, says Walt Bialas, director of research in JLL’s Dallas office.
He points to a home-buying report from the National Association of Realtors that shows millennials made up the largest share of U.S. home buyers in 2014. Bialas says his assumption was that these are “older” millennials, who are beginning to have families are are ready to own. “But that’s not the case,” he says. “With a median age of just 29, these millennials are pretty representative of the overall group. And, according to NAR, 65 percent are married, which mirrors the overall buying public. So, to our amazement, there is really no generational difference here.”
The report included a few divergences; 14 percent of millennials, for example, were unmarried couples. This is notably higher than the average for the other age groups, but not staggeringly so, Bialas says. Twenty percent were single, which is a lower share when compared with other generations. But this is balanced out by the unmarried couple number. “This makes sense, given that they are at a point in their life cycle of ‘coupling-up,’” Bialas says.
Other interesting notes:
• Reasons for buying included cost savings, a desire to own their own home, and market timing
• Most millennial buyers had previously been renters, with only a minority number moving out of their parents’ homes (another popular myth)
• Eighty-three percent said the needed to “save” for their downpayment, with only 25 percent receiving help from a relative or friend
• Twenty-one percent opted to buy in urban/central city areas, compared with 16 percent overall
“In the end, the millennials are and will continue to be an important home buying group—one that’s not all that different from past generations as they began home buying,” Bialas says.
