Here's What's Different Now For First-Time Home Buyers

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Today, there are very high-stakes in the real estate market. The pandemic has been a very big factor that has impacted the market in the past few months. With low mortgage rates, and more and more people wanting to move, the housing market is thriving. Although this is great for the industry, first-time home buyers have entered a very unique space. With a historic shortage of properties for sale, first-time home buyers are experiencing higher prices and very competitive bidding wars.

According to a recent realtor.com® housing survey, a little under half of first time buyers were either outbid on their dream home or discovered that they simply can’t afford it. In addition, about a fifth of the buyers who took the survey made five or more offers on different properties before having one accepted. In general, the market has become extremely competitive. For first-time buyers, this means that going into the process with clear financing and budgeting is more crucial than ever.

Although the market is very competitive, there are also good news for first-time home buyers. According to the same report, 47% of first-time buyers found that their budgets were larger than they thought. This is largely due to the historically low mortgage rates. Many first-time buyers, however, still have had to compromise on what they wanted in a home. Many had to look for cheaper neighborhoods, and settle for homes that did not have some of the features in their wish lists.