First-Time Home Buyers Losing Market Share

The market share of first-time homebuyers continued to decline this year, slipping one percentage point to 38 percent and down from the long-term average of 40 percent.  This is one of dozens of homebuyer characteristics included in the National Association of Realtors’® (NAR) 2013 Profile of Home Buyers and Seller released today.

The Profile is compiled from a survey conducted by NAR in July among home buyers and sellers who engaged in a real estate transaction between June 2012 and June 2013.  Surveys were mailed to a national sample of about 150,000 and generated 8,767 usable responses.  NAR said this was the latest in a series of NAR surveys on buyer/seller demographics, preferences, motivations and experiences dating back to 1981.  Results are representative of owner-occupants and do not include investors or vacation homes.