Millennials in the Market.

Millennials

For quite awhile now Baby boomers have dominated or shaped the cultural and economic landscape in which we live.  With baby boomers beginning to retire in large numbers, and shrinking numbers as they age, there is a new economic driver at play – Millennials. 

Millennials are a socially connected, environmentally conscious group.  They value individuality within the larger society but also want their choices in life to positively impact the world around them.  Members of this socially active generation want to live close to where they work and play.  This is pushing some new trends in real estate and how agents deal with their clients.

Projects incorporating retail, office and residential options into one compact area or building will continue to trend upward as developers cater to millennials lifestyles and demands for high end amenities.  More and more developments are offering ground floor retail combined with apartments or lofts above that also offer amazing amenities such as rooftop pools and cabanas with coffee and wine bars, or gated dog parks and outdoor kitchens. 

Another trend is the 18 hour city.  This trend focuses on the increased development of urban centers, rather than their surrounding suburbs.  This is often described as the shrinking donut, and is closely connected to the changing lifestyles generated by millennials.  This trend also reflects the retiring baby boomers who are downsizing putting them in direct competition with millennials for real estate, but that is a topic for another blog.  These 18 hour cities are rewarding developers for focusing on preexisting infrastructure.  Often, the history, location, or architectural details of a downtown building provide the amenities and sense of place millennials seek.  

The last trend is the flood of investment capital into the U.S. as well as an uptick in crowd funding.  Most foreign investment has been concentrated in major US metro markets, but it is quickly starting to flow to small metro areas to develop smaller more historic cities.  Crowd funding is also playing a big role in this trend by allowing millennials themselves to invest in the area they want to live with out having to be a millionaire in order to invest.  

These are just a few of the ways millennials are affecting real estate.  They are having profound effects on the market.  Weather you like or dislike the trends with, over 80 million millennials its not going anywhere anytime soon.

Cynthia Schmier, Broker/Owner
CRS, CDPE, CNE, CIAS, MDI, 5-STAR, SRS
RE/MAX Country
Cynthia@Cynthia-Online.com
(360) 400-3475
www.cynthia-online.com