Fannie Mae’s Economic & Strategic Research Group has released a new research study that investigates the impact of consumer attitudes toward renting and homeownership on the future of housing in America. Data from Fannie Mae’s National Housing Survey provides insights into whether current renters, particularly younger Americans, aspire to become homeowners and when they expect to achieve the goal of homeownership. Findings show:
- Ninety percent of aspiring owners expect to purchase a home in the future, even though most have ranked their renting experience favorably.
- Renters who prefer to own appear to have a sense of measured optimism about their homeownership prospects, although most believe it would be difficult to get a mortgage today.
- Forty-two percent of those who expect to buy believe that they will not be able to do so for at least five years.
- Despite the hurdles renters anticipate on the path to homeownership, many say they are renting now primarily as a stepping stone toward making that move in the future.
- Younger renters aged 18 to 34 are nearly twice as likely to say their main reason for renting is to prepare financially for future ownership, compared to renters aged 35 and up.
For more detailed findings from the National Housing Survey Topic Analysis Report, including an FM Commentary from research author Sarah Shahdad, click here.
