[1]The industry has done much talking about where the housing market will stand in 2016 and where America's most-talked about generation—the millennials— are moving in the coming year.
Now, it's time to shed a little light on retirees and where they would like to settle in 2016 after they have wrapped up their career.
Realtor.com showed in a recent report [2] that consumers aged 65 to 74 are expected to comprise the third largest portion of homebuyers in 2016 after millennials and Gen Xers.
Retirees will likely want to downsize from their current homes, Realtor.com said. Therefore, they will be looking to sell their home and purchase a new one in the coming spring season.
"Since most of these retirees are already homeowners, they’ll be selling as well as buying—likely in the spring," Realtor.com stated in the report. "And they’re already looking. Unlike first-time buyers overwhelmed by options, they know what they want: new construction and the ability to customize their home to get what they want."
Realtor.com's lists Boston, Massachusetts as the top city where retirees will want to settle in 2016. Here, the median household income for 65-to 74-year-olds is $56,066 and the maximum affordable home price is $235,952.
Sacramento, California is second on the list with a median household income $54,929 and the maximum affordable home price $252,359. In third, San Diego, California hosts a median household income $58,535 and a maximum affordable home price $265,073.
In November, homebuilders in the single-family 55+ housing market showed strong confidence [3] in the third quarter of 2015.
The National Association of Home Builders [4]' (NAHB) 55+ Housing Market Index [5] (HMI) showed a reading of 60 in the third quarter, an increase of three points from last quarter.
“Builders have a positive outlook on the 55+ housing market,” said Timothy McCarthy, chairman of NAHB's 55+ Housing Industry Council and managing partner of Traditions of America in Radnor, Pennsylvania. “In fact, the markets for single-family, apartments and condos are all doing quite well, and we expect that trend to continue.”
“Like the overall housing market, we continue to see steady, positive growth in the 55+ market,” said David Crowe, NAHB chief economist. “With the economy and job growth continuing to improve gradually, many consumers are now able to sell their current homes at a suitable price, enabling them to buy or rent in a 55+ community.”
Realtor.com's Top 10 Retiree Housing Markets:
- Boston, Massachusetts
- Sacramento, California
- San Diego, California
- Sarasota, Florida
- Fort Myers, Florida
- St. Louis, Missouri
- Virginia Beach, Virginia
- Tucson, Arizona
- Atlanta, Georgia
- Knoxville, Tennessee