Myths of Millennials: True and False in the Story of a Generation

Unpretentious confidence, functionality, authenticity – these are the elements of style that shape the present and future of real estate now, thanks to the influence of millennials arriving in the homebuying marketplace. The myths about millennials’ substance – that they were disaffected, disconnected, and disinclined to commitments – are evaporating amidst their impact on the homebuying market today and their anticipated influence tomorrow.

Before millennials reached the life stages of homebuying, their preferences were taking shape in art and entertainment, clothing, and cuisine. What millennials value and where they place their priorities began to take shape and light up the marketplace long before they decided to become homeowners. The signals were there all along. These are people who know the way to get their way.

While real estate professionals waited for this generation to come to market, some of the theories why they postponed buying homes were speculative. Turns out it was less a matter of interest or energy than it was of the hurdles that faced millennials. Those obstacles to homeownership were not unique to a generation, but the array and assortment and brunt of them was one that millennials might call their own.

By now, it’s well settled that we were never looking at a set of young people who were disengaged – or even disinterested. Rather, a landscape of student debt, job market dimensions, tall price points prior to 2008, and different difficulties after it all played a role. Together, they played a sinister symphony in postponing homeownership for many millennials.

A Matter of Taste

What’s less obvious and possibly more interesting is the matter of millennials’ taste. The kind of home that a person desires has a lot to do with the course they foresee their life taking, and for millennials, that course was in many cases all their own. Just as climbing a corporate ladder for an ultimate gold watch is not the course of life nowadays, so, too, millennials make fewer compromises in quality of life just for career. A series of company relocations, once a hallmark of rising executives and one engine of the housing market, is far less frequently called for now, and even less frequently accepted.

Another thing absent from many millennials’ game plans is working their way up from a “starter home,” much less a “fixer-upper.” More and more, we see people and couples coming into the homebuying chapter of their lives with the ultimate goal clearly in mind – and little patience for postponing it.

More than in any previous generation we can recall, homebuyers today aim higher and intend to stay put. This calls for a different kind of decision – and different resources to bring that decision within reach.

The Resources Called For

Formulating a favorable blend of down payment, mortgage, and terms – and sourcing it – is less simple and more individual for people with these goals and outlooks. Helping to make the pros and cons of each option clearer is a part of our work that we find really rewarding. The fact that the answers must be more original nowadays just adds to that satisfaction.

We’d suggest it’s one of the reasons we encourage borrowers to get professional help and to know who they are dealing with when they shop for a mortgage. As professionals know, it’s more than a few calculations. It calls for understanding and the ability to turn a particular vision into someone’s reality.