Millennial Homebuying Attitudes Mixed Due to Financial Woes

Millennials often face many obstacles when trying to purchase a home such as financial hardships and the inability to afford the down payment, a task that is much more difficult for them compared to their predecessors.

Recent survey data from Credit Karma showed that Millennials (ages 18-34) have a different outlook on homeownership than the Baby Boomer generation (ages 50-65).

According to Credit Karma, approximately 60 percent of millennials own a home, while nearly 80 percent of Baby Boomers indicated that they own a home.

The majority of both Millennials (almost 80 percent) and Boomers (almost 90 percent) noted that their spouse and/or themselves paid most of the down payment, or the entire purchase price if the home was bought in cash. On the other hand, very few of both generations said that either their parents, spouse's parents, or another source paid for the down payment.

As far as future home purchases are concerned for those that do not own a home yet, about 45 percent of Millennials are sure they want to purchase in the near future, while almost 50 percent said they would like to buy but are not sure when.

One surprising piece of data that the survey showed was that over 80 percent of  Millennials believe owning a home is an essential part of financial success, while a little over 70 percent of Boomers feel this way.

Yesterday, existing-home sales reversed the downward trend recorded in August due to stock market declines, and rose 4.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rates of 5.55 million in September, the highest pace since February 2007.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported Thursday that September's rebound in existing-home sales marks a year-over-year increase for 12 consecutive months and all four major regions experienced gains.

The biggest shock that the NAR reported was that the first-time buyer share declined from their highest share of the year at 32 percent in August to 29 percent in September, the same total recorded a year ago.

Realtor.com Chief Economist Jonathan Smoke noted that despite the decline, "we estimate from the monthly sales data this year that first-time buyers have been responsible for 45 percent of the growth in sales over last year. The September share decline may simply reflect more competition in September by repeat buyers whose closings slipped in August due to the stock market disruptions."