Who Is the Typical U.S. Homebuyer? MABA MassachusettsRealEstate FirstTimeHomeBuyers MaBuyerAgent

 According to the National Association of Realtors‘ (NAR) 2024 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, the market share of first-time homebuyers fell to a historic low of twenty four pecent (down from thirty two percent last year), while the average age of home buyers reached all-time highs of fifty six years (compared to forty nine last year), thirty eight years for first-time buyers (compared to thirty five last year), and sixty one years for repeat buyers (compared to fifty eight last year).

 “The U.S. housing market is split into two groups: first-time buyers struggling to enter the market and current homeowners buying with cash,” said Jessica Lautz, NAR Deputy Chief Economist and VP of Research. “First-time buyers face high home prices, high mortgage interest rates and limited inventory, making them a decade older with significantly higher incomes than previous generations of buyers. Meanwhile, current homeowners can more easily make housing trades using built-up housing equity for cash purchases or large down payments on dream homes.”

What Does the Typical U.S. Homebuyer Look Like?

• First-time buyers decreased to twenty four percent of the market share (thirty two percent last year). This year now marks the lowest share since NAR began collecting the data in 1981.
• The median first-time buyer age increased to thirty eight years old this year from thirty five last year, while the typical repeat buyer age also increased to sixty one years from fifty eight last year.
• Some sixty two percent of recent buyers were married couples, twenty percent were single females, eight percent were single males, and six percent were unmarried couples.
• Roughly seventy three percent of recent buyers did not have a child under the age of eighteen in their home. This is the highest share recorded.
• Approximately seven teen percent of homebuyers purchased a multigenerational home, for cost savings (thirty six percent), to take care of aging parents (twenty five percent), because of children or relatives over the age of eighteen moving back home (twenty one percent, and children over the age of eighteen who never left home (twenty percent).
• Some eighty three percent of buyers were white/Caucasian, roughly seven percent were Black/African-American, six percent were Hispanic/Latino, four percent were Asian/Pacific Islander, and three percent identified as some other race.
• An estimated eighty eight percent of recent homebuyers identified as heterosexual, three percent as gay or lesbian, two percent as bisexual, one percent prefer to self-describe, and six percent preferred not to answer.
• Some sixteen percent of recent homebuyers were veterans and two percent were active-duty service members.
• At twenty two percent, the primary reason for purchasing a home was the desire to own a home of their own. For first-time buyers, this number jumps to sixty four percent.

Buyer Demographics Vary Across U.S. Housing Markets

 The median household income for the average homebuyer increased from $107,000 in 2022 to $108,800 in 2023. The median household income for first-time buyers was $97,000, increasing $26,000 over the previous two years and up from $95,900 the year before. The typical household income of repeat buyers increased to $114,300 from $111,700 the year before.

  Married couples now make up sixty two percent of all buyers, while the percentage of female buyers who are single has slightly climbed to twenty percent. On the other hand, the percentage of unmarried couples fell to six percent while the percentage of single men fell to eight percent. Further, the proportion of unmarried female first-time purchasers increased by five percent.

 Some eighty three percent of recent homebuyers identified their ethnicity as White or Caucasian. Seven percent of recent buyers identified as Black/African American, six percent identified as Hispanic/Latino, four percent identified as Asian/Pacific Islander and three percent as some other ethnicity.

 Roughly seventy three percent of recent homebuyers did not have a child under the age of eighteen in their home the highest share recorded. Roughly seventeen percent of homebuyers purchased a multigenerational home, the highest share in the data series. The top reasons cited were cost savings (thirty six percent), to take care of aging parents (twenty five percent), children over the age of eighteen moving back home (twenty one percent), and children over the age of eighteen who never left home (twenty percent).

 “As home buyers encounter an unaffordable housing market, many are choosing to double up as families,” Lautz said. “Cost savings are a major factor, with young adults returning home or never leaving due to prohibitive rental and home prices. Meanwhile, elderly parents and relatives are moving in with family members as home buyers reprioritize what matters most to them.”

Agents, Lenders Assist Purchasers During Complex Homebuying Process

 With eighty six percent of all purchasers using their services the most of any information source real estate agents were vital to the homebuying process. The most helpful source of information during the house hunt was the agents themselves.

 A real estate agent or broker was involved in eighty eight percent of home purchases, indicating the ongoing significance of agents in the homebuying process. Almost ninety percent of purchasers said they were satisfied with their agent’s timeliness, understanding of the real estate market, honesty and integrity, and people skills. Some eighty percent homebuyers said they would refer their agency to others or use them again.

 The median down payment for all homebuyers in 2024 was eighteen percent, for first-time buyers it was nine percent, and for repeat purchasers it was twenty three percent. These were the biggest down payments for first-time buyers since 1997 and for repeat buyers since 2003. Though twenty five percent used loans or presents from friends and family, twenty one percent used financial assets, and an all-time high of seven percent used inheritances, first-time buyers still mostly rely on savings (sixty nine percent). A record twenty six percent of homebuyers made cash payments.

 The highest documented average age of home sellers was sixty three years old. For the first time in four years, the percentage of married couples selling their homes increased to sixty nine percent from sixty five percent the previous year. The desire to relocate closer to friends and family was the most common reason given by sellers for selling their house (twenty three percent), followed by the home being too small (twelve percent), the home being too large (eleven percent), and the community losing its appeal (ten percent).

 “Family support systems are influencing buying and selling decisions,” Lautz said. “Being close to friends and family is the top reason to sell, while buying a home convenient to friends and family continues to grow in importance. Today’s buyers are less likely to be concerned with their work locations when purchasing, perhaps because of a higher share of older repeat buyers and remote work flexibility remaining a factor.”

 Only six percent of sales were for-sale-by-owner, an all-time low, while ninety percent of sellers sold with the help of a real estate agent, up from eighty nine percent the previous year. The majority of sellers (eighty seven percent) stated that they would refer their agent for future services either definitely (seventy two percent) or possibly (fifteen percent).

 “Most home buyers and sellers find it valuable to use an agent who is a Realtor to help them maneuver through the complicated homebuying and selling processes, especially in a challenging housing market,” said NAR President Kevin Sears, Broker-Associate of Sears Real Estate/Lamacchia Realty in Springfield, MA. “Realtors provide critical knowledge and expertise that ensure a successful transaction.”

To read the full report, including more data, charts, and methodology, click here.

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