With the existential realization that many millennials are now in their 30s, it is important to ask yourself what this means for your business as a real estate agent. While many may think that millennials are killing many industries, we can go ahead and shed that stereotype for the housing market.
Millennials Are The Majority Of Homebuyers Now?
2013:
According to the National Association of Realtors, in 2013 Millennials (those under age 33 at the time) accounted for 28% of the homebuyers of that year. This is a close second to Generation Xers, that made up 31% of homebuyers in 2013.
2016:
3 years later in 2016, Millennials (age 36 and under as of 2016) have overtaken Gen Xers is now the largest homebuying demographic. In 2016, millennials jumped up to 34% of homebuyers while Gen Xers took a dip to 28%. The Early Baby Boomer Generation accounted for 16%, with the Later Baby Boomer Generation staying consistent as 14% of the homebuyers.
Trends:
If you haven't been staying up to date with the hoverboards, fidget spinners, and snap chats....here are the trends for how millennials found the home they purchased:
| 2013 | 2016 |
| 49% - internet 32% - real estate agent 11% - immediate network 8% - offline marketing |
56% - internet 28% - real estate agent 10% - immediate network 6% - offline marketing |
What This Means To You:
It looks like more and more millennials are searching for homes on their phones. And oh, how much they love their phones. You can note that home searches on the internet increased in the past 3 years, but the reliance on a real estate agent, their immediate network, and print advertisements have dropped slightly.
Hopefully we can do the math and realize that where we need to be is the internet. You will want to be active on social media, on your personal page and on your business profile. Both profiles are crucial to building relationships with your future clients. That website sales person might actually be onto something. This doesn't mean we should put all our eggs in a single basket though, as 44% of millennials find their homes through offline methods. Just make sure you come across as responsive, techy-savvy, trustworthy, and amiable....and we're sure that millennial will choose you as their real estate agent.
