Generation Z more eager to buy homes than millennials, study finds
According to the study, 83 percent of Gen Z respondents plan to purchase a home within five years. In contrast, millennials who have been renting for years have a far less positive outlook on homeownership.
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Real estate professionals have been spending a lot of time lately considering millennials. Are they relying on family assistance to pay their rent? Are they spending too much of their income on housing? And where is it that they want to live anyway?
But real estate firm Property Shark suggests that it may be time to focus more on Generation Z. Not merely because time marches on, and there are newer, younger renters to be wooed. But because signs point to their being — somehow — more optimistic about homeownership than their avocado-toast-eating forebears.
Property Shark defines the newest generation to reach buzzword-happy marketers as those born after 1995 into a fully digital world. Millennials were considered those born between 1981 and 1994 and Gen Z as those born between 1995 and 2010
Property Shark's generational survey concludes that the younger cohort is remarkable in its positive feelings toward real estate investing.
According to the study, 83 percent of Gen Z respondents planned to purchase a home within five years (they can check back with us after talking to Sallie Mae). In contrast, millennials who have been renting for years have a far less positive outlook on homeownership. Unsurprisingly, both generations view student debt and down payments as the most significant obstacles to owning real estate. The study also indicates about 100,000 Gen Zers already own property, despite the eldest in their cohort being about 23 years old.
Here are other takeaways from the study:
Gen X chooses intergenerational living to care for relatives more often than any other generation
Gen Z is willing to compromise on almost anything to keep costs down — but still aspires to have ample space and amenities
Gen Z will pose serious competition to millennials on the real estate market
Take a look at the whole study, including amenities of interest to each generation and expectations related to square footage and future down payments.