Survey: Buyer age impacts preferred home size
WASHINGTON – March 21, 2013 – A recent study from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) finds that age, race and ethnicity impact the size home the average buyer wants.
NAHB’s survey – What Home Buyers Really Want – surveyed more than 3,600 homebuyers across the country about new home characteristics. Based on the results, the median desired home size is 2,226 square feet. However, the data broken down by buyer characteristics shows differences in preferred home size.
Age plays an important role in a buyer’s preferences, with the amount of space requirements dropping steadily as a buyer gets older. Among those younger than 35, the desired home size is 2,494 square feet, but that drops to 2,065 square feet among those 65 and older.
“The building industry wants to know how much space buyers want in their homes” says Rose Quint, NAHB’s assistant vice president for survey research and one of the study’s authors. “This study provides us with new insight into the home size preference of home buyers as a whole, but also across different demographic groups.”
Race and ethnicity also impacted home size preferences, with minority buyers desiring more space than White, non-Hispanic buyers. White, non-Hispanic buyers report wanting about 2,197 square feet, while Asian buyers desire 2,280 square feet, Hispanic buyers want 2,347 square feet, and African-American buyers prefer 2,664 square feet.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, after peaking in 2006, median home size fell in 2007, 2008 and 2009, but reversed course and has risen for the past three years. Estimates indicate that the median size of all single-family homes started in 2012 was 2,309 square feet, and the average was 2,521 square feet.
