If you're in the market to sell your home this year, it pays for you to do
some market research about your target audience, the buyers! Real Estate Trends
2020 -- Baby Boomer Buyers is the third video in my series about generational
trends in the real estate market. Make sure you watch them all. Hey! I am so
happy to have you join me today. Selling your house is a big decision, and there
is a lot of thought process that goes into it. Make sure you download my free
seller's guide. I'll leave the link for it in the description box below. It's
jam-packed full of awesome tips to help you get on the right track. Hey there, my
name is Emily Farber, and I'm a Realtor® with Lepic-Kroeger, Realtors® in Iowa City,
Iowa. I create YouTube video content all about real estate and the Greater Iowa
City area. I'd love to have you join me on this journey so make sure to
subscribe, and pro tip, if you ring the bell icon down below you will be sure to
be notified every time I put out a new video, which, is every single Friday.
We sure do hear a lot about baby boomers in the media. This generation of people
were born between 1946 and 1964. According to the National Association of
Realtors 2019 Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends Report, this generation of
people account for about 32% of home sales in the United States. Of this
generation of people, younger baby boomers tend to buy for reasons that are
pretty common across the board for all generations, including: a job relocation,
the desire to be closer to friends and family ,or simply the desire to buy their
own home. Older boomers report their most common
reasons for buying a home to include things like: retirement, the desire to be
closer to friends or family, or the need to move in order to accommodate a
household member's health needs. Much like Gen X buyers, there is a noticeable
percentage of baby boomer buyers who end up buying a multi-generational home.
Statistics show up to about 15% of home purchases made by boomers are
multi-generational houses. The most common reasons for this are boomers who
need to take care of their aging parents, or boomers who have adult children
living in the house that have not yet ever moved out, or adult children who are
returning home. As a seller, if you have a house that is set up for
multi-generational living, for instance you have a in-law suite in your basement
or above your garage, make sure to really highlight that in your marketing. New
construction makes up about 14% of new home sales nationally.
However, baby boomers are the generation most likely to be purchasing brand-new
homes at about 19% of their home purchases. As a seller, what does this
mean to you? After all, you're probably not selling a brand new home. What it
means is that you should strive for near perfection with your property. People
tend to buy new construction because they're looking for ease of ownership.
They want to avoid all of the headaches involved with home maintenance. So beyond
just making sure your home is cosmetically appealing, make sure that
some of the more expensive and serious mechanical items are in top-notch working
order, or have been replaced, if they are near the end of their expected lifespan.
And don't forget about your roof, either! I can tell you that just about every
buyer I have ever worked with ends up asking about the condition and the age
of the roof. Across the board, for all generations, by far single-family homes
are the most popular, however, people in the baby boomer generation are slightly
more likely than other generations to purchase condos, townhomes, and zero
lots. The reason for this includes their desire to have a home without a
lot of maintenance to worry about, and condos and townhomes often have HOAs
that cover exterior maintenance. Another reason is they're interested in
purchasing a smaller home. When shopping for new homes baby boomers tend to rely
heavily upon the internet and their real estate agents. Interestingly though, baby
boomers look for their new home longer than other generations, topping in at
about 12 weeks of home searching, and during those 12 weeks, they visit
approximately 10 homes. As a home seller what can you do to make sure that your
home is the one that stops the buyer in their tracks? Make sure that you hire a
real estate agent who is well-connected locally and will make sure your home
absolutely shines on multiple internet platforms. As an interesting sidenote
statistics show that buyers who rely the most heavily upon their real estate
agents for guidance throughout the transaction also tend to be the buyers
that are most satisfied with the home buying process. If I had a mic, this is
where I do a mic drop.
Hey, thanks for joining me on Real Estate Trends 2020 -- Baby Boomer Buyers. I hope
you found it to be helpful in your understanding of generational trends
when you are preparing to put your house on the market. Don't forget to download
that free seller's guide. The link for it is down below, and remember to subscribe!
I wouldn't want you to miss out. It's been fun, and I'll catch you later.