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The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

cnbc.com

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Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#51

Post by ithkuil »

trymas wrote: post #28
intexpress wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The article says: “That’s a historic high, up from an average age in the low-to-mid 40s in the early 2010s.”

Does this mean that the average buyers are the same people for 15 years? Those who are 56 now, were 42 in 2010.

If that's true then it means the statistics include people that sell their home to buy a new one. Not sure what lesson we should draw from it but perhaps it's not just that young people don't buy homes anymore (if that's what you wanted to observe then find statistics that show the age of first home buyers)

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#52

Post by twelve40 »

phyzix5761 wrote: post #35

I do financial coaching as a side business and I can tell you the main two reason why most people in their 30s can't afford a home is because they have no idea how to budget and they carry too much debt spent on things they don't need. On average people spend about 30% of their income paying off non mortgage debts like credit cards, car loans, and student loans. I teach my clients how to budget, cut back on unnecessa…

Wow that's a cool side business.

> spent on things they don't need

Do you actually find people who pay you to teach them to stop buying crap? Like, when I get a Doordash I already know it's a waste of money that instead could compound as an investment, but I do it as a treat...

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#53

Post by shiroiushi »

gkanai wrote: post #8
whatever1 wrote: post #6

This is not a U.S only or even a western issue. UK, EU, China, India etc all suffer from crazy real estate prices. I think the whole world is due for a big societal revamp. The old generation has concentrated too much asset wealth for the productive generation to stay productive.

Not Japan, fwiw. Japan has been very reasonable for real estate for decades. We're now seeing inflation in major metro areas but outside of that, it's very reasonable.

The inflation is mostly because of the devaluation of the yen compared to the USD, mostly because the BOJ refuses to raise interest rates.

There is some real estate inflation in very desirable parts of the biggest cities because of foreign investment, but I'd say it's limited. There's still lots of new construction going on, though it's slowing due to labor shortages. The foreign investment can only go so far: real estate isn't a great investment here because structures depreciate rapidly, and it's relatively easy to build new housing just about anywhere if you own the land.

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#54

Post by Ekaros »

twelve40 wrote: post #30
whatever1 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Japan also suffers from severe population decline (I think it has been declining for 15 years straight). Aka the old guard let their assets go the hard way.

Always wondered what happens to housing in countries that rapidly depopulate. Like, Latvia losing 1/3 of its population, or Japan losing 4 million in 10 years. So they now have much fewer people for the same housing supply? Does it all just get abandoned?

Yes. Country side or old industrial downs die out with properties will have negative value. While prices in places like capital regions can be unsustainable. In Finland this is happening. Thankfully other growing or sustainable large cities still have somewhat reasonable prices outside most central core.

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#55

Post by grigri907 »

lnsru wrote: post #24
nelsonfigueroa wrote: post #14

I thought I would have a house in my 20s. Then I thought maybe by the time I was in my 30s. Now I’m in my 30s and I have no idea when I’ll buy a house, if ever.

Depends on how hard you want it. I spent more than a decade between the start of the search for proper property and buy decision. I even managed to sign my mortgage agreement in last weeks of cheap money in eurozone. It’s a long game unless you have a case full of cash.

To a degree. But plenty of people want it real bad and there aren't enough days of avocado toast in a month that add up to a mortgage.

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#56

Post by estreeper »

PaulRobinson wrote: post #20
paulddraper wrote: post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Inheritance is tough. Death tax takes a good chunk.

Do you know the actual rates, what value the estate must be at for it to kick in, and in which states? Are you aware of spousal transfers and other mechanisms to reduce or avoid it? Most people get very worried about “death tax”, until they do the numbers on their own estate and realise either it mostly doesn’t apply to them or it’s marginal. In the UK this is often used as a major campaign point but the number of es…

In the United States, federal tax applies when the estate is valued over $13.6M for 2024[1], though as you mention spousal transfers and other methods can be used for tax avoidance as well.

1. https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employe...

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#57

Post by shiroiushi »

portaouflop wrote: post #41
twelve40 wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Always wondered what happens to housing in countries that rapidly depopulate. Like, Latvia losing 1/3 of its population, or Japan losing 4 million in 10 years. So they now have much fewer people for the same housing supply? Does it all just get abandoned?

Yes mostly the small villages get abandoned and life concentrated in the cities. So it does not help the housing problem all that much - sure there are now houses available in the countryside but no one wants to move there.

But there isn't a major housing problem in the cities at all: there's lots of housing, and lots of new construction for new housing, keeping prices in check. The problem everywhere else is that people don't want to build housing, and that factor doesn't apply in Japan. Here, if you can buy the land, you can basically build whateverTF you want on it. So in desirable places, big real estate companies like Mitsui Fudosan buy up land and build apartment blocks or tower mansions on them, and in farther-out (less dense) places old houses are routinely demolished and replaced with new ones. There's no worry about NIMBYs keeping you from building.

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#58

Post by dqv »

torginus wrote: post #26
arthurcolle wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mortality fixes generational issues

Considering the average life expectancy, inheriting a house from your parents won't happen much sooner than 56.

Oh, I guess I'm in the wrong crowd. My immediate assumption was not inheritance, but tax/debt sales and a housing glut pushing the prices down.

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#59

Post by phyzix5761 »

twelve40 wrote: post #52
phyzix5761 wrote: post #35

I do financial coaching as a side business and I can tell you the main two reason why most people in their 30s can't afford a home is because they have no idea how to budget and they carry too much debt spent on things they don't need. On average people spend about 30% of their income paying off non mortgage debts like credit cards, car loans, and student loans. I teach my clients how to budget, cut back on unnecessa…

Wow that's a cool side business. > spent on things they don't need Do you actually find people who pay you to teach them to stop buying crap? Like, when I get a Doordash I already know it's a waste of money that instead could compound as an investment, but I do it as a treat...

Almost every single client I meet has no idea how much is actually going towards eating out or entertainment every month until we sit together and look at the numbers.

Everyone knows how much their rent and car payment is but most other stuff people have no idea. A lot of people don't even want to look at the numbers on their own so they need someone they can trust to help them face the reality.

Having someone who can sit you down through the process of accounting for every dollar, calls out areas where you're over spending, and helps you create a realistic balanced budget is very valuable.

Plus, there's other things like understanding the most effective way to pay off your debts, how much you could actually afford if you wanted to buy a house or a car, and understanding how to build wealth. Most people lack these skills but are very successful once they learn them.

Re: The average age of U.S. homebuyers jumps to 56

#60

Post by trhway »

If we look at the actual report

https://www.nar.realtor/research-and-statistics/research-rep...

the first-time homebuyers age moved up from the historically typical 33 to the current 38 only in the last 3 years which is not surprising given that the rates and thus mortgage payment jumped 2x times while all the other prices and thus expenses also jumped.

I anything the graph tells that the repeat buyers' situation has been worsening over the last 4 decades - from 36 years age to 61 - while the first buyers' one hadn't changed that much - 29 in 1981 to 33 in 2021 - until the last 3 years. So it is more of the story of worsening situation of the middle class.

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