Will the next buying boom be fueled by Generation X and Y buyers? I believe so and I’ve been preaching to every person who will listen to me that that Generation X and Y buyers are ready to make a move right now. Now, I know some of you are burdened with student debt; I understand that. I understand that some of you are living at home with your parents and you’re very, very comfortable, but there’s another whole segment you that is not in that category. There’s a segment of you that is living in a rental and watching your rents go up every single year, and go up dramatically every single year. BUT – There are segments of you, and again, what we’re talking about is the X and Y generation, that are ready to buy right now. Let’s take a look at numbers. Here’s the homeownership rate by age. What we can see is there’s been the biggest falloff in percentages for that 35 and under group, the group I’m specifically talking about right now. That drop‐off is going to be corrected. Let me show you a few statistics. Now, part of you, as I mentioned before, are living with your parents. Take a look at the graph below showing the 25‐ to 34‐year‐olds living with their parents, in millions. Back in 2003, that number was four million, ending last year it was 5.9, and probably that number is over six million right now, but again, that’s the anomaly, from the four million to the six million. There are two million people, two million young adults between the ages of 25 and 34, who are living with their parents right now. Some are by choice and some are due to economic realities, but either way many of you still place a high value on owning a nice home. Here’s another interesting tidbit. Better Homes & Gardens did a national survey of 18‐ to 35‐year‐olds. And the major question? What is the fundamental indicator of success for that age group? Seventy‐five percent, three out of four, said owning a nice home. The next closest thing was taking extravagant vacations, which made that down all the way to 12 percent; own an expensive car, nine percent; owning designer clothing and looking good, five percent. I believe that now might be the greatest time in American real estate history for young people to step up and purchase, and ladies and gentlemen, I’m not the only one. This is an actual quote from the joint housing studies of Harvard University this past summer. This is what their report said: "Surveys consistently find that the overwhelming majority of young adults plan to own a home in the future. But many would‐be buyers have stayed on the sidelines, waiting for the job outlook to improve and housing prices to stop falling. But as markets tighten, these fence‐sitters may begin to take advantage of today’s lower home prices and unusually low mortgage rates." So it’s not me saying this, it’s even Harvard saying it. Generation X and Y buyers are also getting into childrearing ages, and they know something that every study just keeps on repeating. When children grow up in a home that is homeowner occupied, they do better in school. And according to a new study by Professors Richard K. Green and Gary D. Painter at the University of Southern California and Michelle J. White at the University of San Diego, they found that their findings reaffirmed the idea that homeownership, in and of itself, predicts positive outcomes for children. This result applies to the likelihood both of children remaining in school and girls not bearing children as teenagers. The two major things they were looking at: Do people stay in school and stay in school longer, and do they not, the teenaged children, not have children? Homeownership was a big indicator in those. You can read the full report; it’s pretty interesting. I believe the dream of home ownership is alive and well. I also believe more people can buy a home of their own today than ever before. The young people that make up Generation X and Y know the value of homeownership and see the benefits it provides to their children, in addition to the economic benefits they receive. If you’re thinking of buying a house but you’re not sure if you can afford it, or where to start, I’d like to point you to my first time buyer page. It’s loaded with information on buying your first home and lots of other great information too. You can even sign up for a first time buyer course that will deliver information right to your e-mail so you can take your time learning about the whole process. Don’t sit on the sidelines and let historically low rates and great prices pass you by. Of course you can shorten the process by doing what a lot of people did last year – Just "Call Paul & Start Packing!" 913-800-0536