Housing market trends are showing that younger Americans, specifically those who are part of Generation Y, are becoming interested in owning their own home or condo; however, whether or not their finances can handle the additional burden is another situation.
According to a study conducted in May by Harris Interactive, 41 percent of Americans aged 18-34 display an interest in purchasing a home. A subset of that group, 17 percent men and 6 percent female, say it’s their “shaky finances” due to large student loan debt and a poor job market that are preventing them from pursuing their dream at this time.
With mortgage interest rates at record lows, only 5 percent of those who actually planned to buy a home or condo this year opted to wait, feeling that they just couldn’t afford the monthly mortgage and taxes after carefully reviewing their financial situations.
Those members of Generation X, the group just ahead of the Millennials, are seeing a more mixed reaction on home buying desires, fueled mostly by their current marital status and family obligations. Only 20 percent of Gen Xers who were separated, divorced or widowed expressed an interest in purchasing a home, while 31 percent of married respondents expressed an interest.
So what do these growing percentages of home buying interest of these two groups mean? As the housing market continues to rebound and dormant, unpurchased houses, which have been sitting for months, begin to see life as members of these two generations once again begin purchasing homes, market confidence will continue to grow and the overall housing market will continue to strengthen.