Housing Giants - April 24, 2008 - (Page 24)

‘‘ The hom building industry is already in a transition today – it home was in transition before the recent crisis. It’s something that will continue to shift.” – Dowell Myers, UCLA professor of urban planning and demography Click here to listen to Dowell Myers since seniors are net home sellers,” Myers says. He notes that the decisions of existing homeowners thrive on personal, financial, community and life-cycle factors. These decisions could “flood the market with excess supply without regard to demand.” Due to the disparity in the size of generations, many aging baby boomers are likely to have a dearth of potential buyers for their homes. This trend could cause deflation in home prices and reduce demand for new home construction in areas where there is an oversupply of homes for sale. There is some good news for construction companies, however, as baby boomers may defy one historic trend. Fewer boomers may downsize than members of older generations at similar ages, according to 24 HOUSING GIANTS.4.24.08 the report “State of the Nation’s Housing 2007” by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University. “A recent National Association of Realtors survey of baby boomers confirms this trend, with 15 percent of likely movers planning to relocate because they need larger homes and another 13 percent because they can afford to trade up,” the JCHS report says. “Only five percent plan to move to smaller homes.” Says Myers: “The baby boomers who choose to remain in their homes will become an increasingly important source of demand for remodeling projects intended to help them age in place.” GENERATIONS X & Y AND THE AFFORDABILITY BARRIER Culturally, Generation Xers were marked WWW.HOUSINGGIANTS.COM http://www.jchs.harvard.edu/publications/markets/son2007/son2007.pdf http://www.jchs.harvard.edu/publications/markets/son2007/son2007.pdf http://www.jchs.harvard.edu http://www.jchs.harvard.edu http://www.realtor.org/ http://WWW.HOUSINGGIANTS.COM

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Housing Giants - April 24, 2008

Housing Giants - April 24, 2008 Contents Viewpoint News and Moves Sell Workforce Housing The New Housing Demographics

Housing Giants - April 24, 2008

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