Forty-nine percent of those who don't own their homes say they expect to purchase a home within the next five years. Ten percent say they plan to buy within the next year, according to a recent survey by Gallup of more than 1,500 adults. An additional 20 percent of non-homeowners say they plan to become homeowners within 10 years.
That leaves only 28 percent who say they have no plans to buy a home, according to the Gallup poll.
The percentage of non-homeowners who are looking to buy has risen over the past year. Gallup’s survey from April 2016 showed 38 percent of non-homeowners did not intend to buy in the foreseeable future, and 41 percent said they would buy within five years.
The most willing buyers tend to be millennials and Generation X members. Fifty-two percent of respondents age 18 to 34 say they plan to buy within five years; that number is 58 percent for those age 35 to 54. Only 30 percent of non-homeowners over the age of 55 say they plan to buy within that time period.
The persistent constraints on housing supply, however, pose a big problem for those looking to buy. Home shoppers are facing a limited selection of homes for sale. And as more owners stay put, inventories are being constrained even more. Sixty-four percent of U.S. adults surveyed by Gallup say they do not think they’ll sell their home in the foreseeable future. Twenty percent of survey respondents say they expect to sell within the next five years, 13 percent plan to sell within the next 10 years, and just 4 percent say they plan to sell next year.
"If real estate demand continues to outpace real estate supply, home prices will continue to rise and could rise beyond what most Americans can afford,” says Jeffrey M. Jones, who reported the Gallup poll findings. “To the extent that happens, many would-be homeowners may not be able to achieve their goal of owning a home."
Source: “Gallup Poll Shows High Hopes for Homeownership,” Mortgage News Daily (May 9, 2017)
