by Calculated Risk on 11/04/2014 02:31:00 PM

From housing economist Tom Lawler:

The National Association of Realtors released the results of its 2014 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, which are based on a survey of buyers who purchased a home between July 2013 and June 2014. The survey is sent to the address of the home purchased, and the virtually all respondents purchased a home for their primary residence. Thus, characteristics of buyers from the survey reflect characteristics of primary residence purchases, and not all home purchases.

According to the 2014 survey, the first-time home buyer share of primary residence home purchases over the 12 month period ending June 2014 was 33%, down from 38% a year earlier and the lowest share since the NAR has attempted to measure the share. The first-time buyer share from this survey includes both new and existing homes.

Click on graph for larger image in graph gallery.

As noted above, the first-time buyer share from the Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers is an estimate of the first-time buyer share of primary residence purchases. The first-time buyer share reported in the NAR’s monthly existing home sales press release, in contrast, is an estimate of the first-time buyer share of total existing home sales, and is based on the buyer characteristics of the last home transaction in a given month of realtors who respond to the survey. When folks say that the “normal” first-time home buyer share is around 40%, they either are or should be referring to the first-time buyer share of homes sold to buyers of their primary residences. Obviously, the “normal” first-time buyer share of total home sales is lower, though it is not clear by how much, because there are no good, reliable data on the investor/second home share of total home sales.

Here are a few other “snippets” from the 2014 PHBS.

• Eighty-eight percent of primary residence buyers financed their home purchase, and for those who financed their purchase, the buyers “typically” financed 90 percent. Ninety-five percent of first-time buyers financed their purchase, compared to 84 percent of repeat buyers.

Comment: The implied “all-cash” share of primary residence purchases seems way too low, and the implied average LTV for purchase mortgage originations seems way too high. That has been true of past reports as well.

• The typical home seller had lived in his/her home for 10 years, and 17 percent of recent sellers had delayed selling their home because the value of their home was below their outstanding mortgage balance. In 2006 and 2007 the typical seller had lived in his/her home for six years.

• Buyers “expect” to live in their homes for 12 years, compared to 8 years in 2006.

Comment: this statistic reflects the “median” expected length of tenure in home purchased, and excludes a sizable “don’t know” category that has grown over time. I don’t have the full 2014 report, but here is a comparison of buyers’ responses on their expected “length of tenure” from the 2013 PHBS compared to the 2006 PHBS.

Expected Length of Tenure in Home Purchased by Age Group, NAR 2006 PHBS (percent of group)
	All Buyers	18-24	25-44	45-64	65+
<=3 Years	12%	18	14	9	7
4 to 5 years	18	36	23	11	5
6 to 10 years	19	23	21	20	12
11+ Years	26	10	24	32	27
Don't Know	24	12	18	28	49
"Median" (years)	8 years	5	6	9	12

Expected Length of Tenure in Home Purchased by Age Group, NAR 2013 PHBS (percent of group)
	All Buyers	18-24	25-44	45-64	65+
<=3 Years	3%	5	4	5	3
4 to 5 years	9	11	12	6	5
6 to 10 years	18	24	20	15	12
11+ Years	33	28	33	37	27
Don't Know	37	31	32	37	54
"Median" (years)	15 years	10	10	20	15

In 2006, when mortgage credit was easy and when consumer expectations for future home price growth were high, an exceptionally large percentage of home buyers, especially among “young adults” (and probably first time buyers) expected to remain in their recently purchased home for less than 3-5 years. In 2013, when credit was “tight” and when expectations for home price growth were “subdued,” there apparently were a lot fewer buyers who expected to live in their purchased home for less than five years – which makes sense, given the high transactions costs associated both with buying and with selling a home.