Stay in Mom’s Basement? Nope! Millennials Were 2014’s Top Home Buyers, Says NAR

If you’ve ever read anything about millennials, you’d be forgiven for thinking they’re shiftless, underemployed ne’er-do-wells with no intention of ever moving out of their parents’ basements. But the truth is millennials are home buyers. In fact, they made up the largest percentage of home buyers in 2014.

Millennials—that is, adults 34 and younger—accounted for 32% of all home purchases last year, according to the 2015 National Association of Realtors® Home Buyer and Seller Generational Trends study. In fact, the median age of a millennial home buyer was 29, with a median income of $76,900. What’s more, millennials were most likely to buy with their unmarried partner.

What’s driving all the home buying? Life. Many young people are employed and having babies. Therefore, they need space. Also, with rising rent, buying a home and locking in a fixed payment for the next 30 years makes good financial sense, to those who can afford to buy. According to the report, millennials, like the majority of buyers, purchased a single-family home in the suburbs. They are nesting.

Even after witnessing the recession, seeing their parents lose their homes, and suffering the indignity of low unemployment rates, millennials are coming out on top. Those who were employed saved their money and were able to use Federal Housing Administration low-down-payment loans to gain a foothold. Still, a full quarter of young buyers depended on their parents for down payment assistance, according to the report, compared to 15% for Generation X, those aged 35 to 49.

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