In the before-times, people would buy “starter homes,” then “trade up” to bigger homes when they started a family, and finally sell their large home in favor of a smaller home as the birds left their nest. The red hot housing market has thrown this well-established cycle into a tailspin, as many older homeowners are avoiding placing their homes on the market because of how competitive the housing market is; in a nutshell, bidding wars are impacting the supply of larger homes.
Many baby boomers are delaying retirement or opting to age in place; many claim that they’re desire to stay in their current homes is motivated by a fear that they won’t be able to find a new residence. Given that baby boomers, as a demographic, hold the vast majority of housing inventory, this should cause concern with people who are worried about the housing supply; the existing number of homes for sale in April 2021 was 20.5% lower than it was in April 2020.
On the other side of the coin, low inventory has boosted housing prices to incredible heights, allowing many homeowners to turn a massive profit on their homes. As such, people looking to sell their homes should be encouraged by the recent data, which suggests that inventory will remain slim for the foreseeable future.
At the Chernov Team we understand that knowledge is power, and knowledge of how the baby boomer demographic is impacting the housing market as a whole is powerful knowledge indeed. At the Chernov Team we know that whoever comes to the table most prepared leaves with the most, and the Chernov Team always leaves the table with the most.
