Being a first time home buyer comes with special challenges. It can be hard to enter the real estate market for the first time. For these reasons, much focus is put into helping first time home buyers. However, recent data published by the Urban Institute showed that we shouldn’t be worried about first time homebuyers- however, repeat home buyers today are struggling. According to Bloomberg, there were 1.8 million repeat home buyers in 2001 but only 900,000 last year.
Bloomberg wrote that many repeat home buyers were disqualified from the mortgage market after going through foreclosure. So, many home owners improved their current home instead of purchasing a new one.
“For repeat home buyers, it’s usually accumulated equity in their first home that lets them trade up into something bigger,” says Laurie Goodman, co-director of the Housing Finance Policy Center at the Urban Institute. “Equity is up from 2011 but not back to where it was at the peak. And credit is tight, and income hasn’t been growing.”
Due to the fact that current home owners are not moving out and into new homes, there are less homes for first time home buyers. While surveys do show that most people want to enter the market as first time home buyers, they will continue to struggle until more current home owners move.
“If you have fewer people trading up into larger homes, you have less inventory in the entry-level market,” said Ralph McLaughlin, chief economist at Trulia.
If you are trying to be a repeat home buyer today in Miami, look no further than RE/MAX Paradise. Our agents can help you find a great next home for you and your family. We have homes in many neighborhoods of the city. If you are a first time home buyer with other unique needs, we can also help you! Contact an agent today.