As we bid adieu to the listless 2024 residential real estate market, will business boom for you in 2025? With a new presidential administration and improved economy, homeowners who have made impressive equity gains may finally decide to move for various reasons, easing inventory woes. As such, here are four new homebuyer trends for the new year, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).
More buyers with no mortgage
With the aforementioned equity gains made by many homeowners who choose to move, they may decide they can just buy their next home without a mortgage. All-cash buyers accounted for 26% of home sales over the past year, while 31% of repeat buyers paid cash for their next home purchase.
Aging first-time buyers
As the average price of a home has risen, more people are needing to save longer for the purchase. The median age of a first-time homebuyer in 2024 was 38, an all-time high, according to NAR. Also, 25% of first-time buyers used a gift or loan from a relative or friend, while 20% took money out of assets like stocks to afford homeownership.
More buyers are pooling money
The number of multigenerational households surged to an all-time high of 17% over the past year. The top reason is for cost savings, says NAR Deputy Chief Economist Jessica Lautz. They’re also buying a multigenerational home to take care of aging parents or because young adults are moving back home.
More single women buyers
With marriage rates dropping, more consumers enter the housing market on their own. Single women held a 24% share of the home-purchase market over the past year. For single men, it was 11%. Also, married couples are having children later in life than did past generations, with housebuying delayed until later in life as well.
