16 Jan Renting Less Affordable than Buying – Except for Where Millennials are Moving
Last week, housing-data giant RealtyTrac released an analysis of fair market rents and median home prices in more than 500 U.S. counties, which shows that buying is still more affordable than renting in the majority of U.S. housing markets. While this offers positive news for the housing industry, the report also reveals that the opposite is true in markets with the biggest increase in the millennial share of the population over the last six years – which begs the question: Where does the future of homeownership stand among the younger generation of first-time homebuyers?
In an interview with RISMedia, RealtyTrac Vice President Daren Blomquist, says this latest report tells us that “we’re not going to see those potential first-time homebuyers become homebuyers in the near future in great numbers because the markets they’re attracted to, largely for jobs, are unaffordable. These markets have high rents and even more expensive homes. I think this shift toward more of a ‘rentership’ society is not just a one – or – two year trend, but will be a multi-year trend.”
According to Blomquist, first-time homebuyers are stuck between a a rock and a hard place, where they often can’t afford to live where they work. “At a macro level, millennials are moving to where the jobs are within a metro area, and also moving to the more urban parts of those areas, not only for jobs, but for the type of neighborhood and amenities that are attractive to them.,” says Blomquist. “The big question is, if and when will they make that transition to the home with the white picket fence.”
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Renting Less Affordable than Buying – Except for Where Millennials Are Moving (RIS Media Article)