Characteristics of Home Buyers and Sellers – from the NAR

November 23, 2009 | By Kelley Koehler | Filed Under Odds and Ends 

Every year, the National Association of REALTORS surveys home buyers and sellers to gather information about the home buying and selling process, demographics of those people, housing characteristics, and whatnot.  The 2009 report just came out.  It’s interesting (to me, at least) to see how these trends change over time.

Highlights:

  • 47% of recent home buyers were first time buyers.
  • 10% of buyers purchased a home in foreclosure, up from 3% in 2008.
  • 20% of those first time buyers said the loan application and approval process was somewhat more difficult than expected, with 10% saying it was much more difficult than expected.
  • The biggest age group of home buyers were 25-34 years old – at 34%.
  • Single females bought 25% of the homes purchased by first-timers.
  • Top three factors influencing neighborhood choice by buyers were quality of the neighborhood, convenience to their job, and overall affordability of homes.
  • 78% of buyers used the internet frequently as an information source.
  • Home buyers looked at an average of 12 homes before making a selection.
  • The primary reason for people to sell their home was for a job relocation, at 21% of home sellers, followed by those needing a larger home, at 19%.
  • Recent sellers sold their homes for 95% of the listing price, with 60% reducing their asking price at least once. (this is the one I have trouble believing applies well to the Tucson area…)
    By the way – the average home seller is 46 years old.  The average home buyer is 39 years old.  The average agent?  Is 54 years old, did 7 transactions in the last year, and earned a median income of $29,400. 
    And 7% of us have blogs. :)

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