Who Buys Homes in the U.S. Today:
The New Face of the American Buyer

American housing is undergoing a demographic shift. The typical first-time buyer is near 40, while the overall buyer average is around 59, and first-timers have fallen to about 21%. This changes expectations, motivations, and communication styles. Below are practical, tech-forward tactics agents can apply right now to win in this new reality.

The market is shifting: who is buying now

Recent reporting indicates the typical first-time buyer in the U.S. is about 40 years old, while the average age across all buyers is near 59, and first-time buyers have declined to roughly 21%. For agents, that is not just trivia — it is a signal to realign your business model. Buyers skew older, more financially secure, and more likely to purchase with strong down payments or cash. They prioritize reliability, simplicity, transparent information, and long-term value over trends or hype.
Plain-English takeaway: adjust your offer and your message. Make it easier to compare total cost of ownership, show long-run resale potential, and emphasize safety, access to healthcare, and transportation. Your website and listing pages should surface this data at a glance, not hide it in fine print.

What mature buyers expect from an agent

Mature buyers are less persuaded by generic slogans and more by clear expertise. They want an agent who understands numbers, taxes, local insurance realities, and neighborhood risk, and who can explain options simply.
Practical upgrades to your materials:

• Add line-item estimates for property taxes, insurance, HOA dues, utilities, and routine maintenance to every listing presentation.
• Include brief notes on floor-plan flexibility, accessibility features, and proximity to healthcare and transit.
• Use short, captioned video tours — many clients watch with sound off on tablets and TVs.
• Send concise email digests with scannable bullets and a clear “Schedule a call” link.

If you run a professional website from MyRE, our team can help you add comparison blocks, TCO widgets, and accessibility checklists to your listing pages — so your expertise is visible, not implied.

Do not lose younger buyers: hidden opportunities

Even with first-timers down to about 21%, the segment remains strategic. Younger households face affordability and rate headwinds, so they explore non-traditional paths — co-buying, house hacking, ADUs, small homes, and exurban lots with build-out potential.
Action plan for under-35 clients:

• Create a “First-Home Pathways” page with FHA, VA, USDA summaries, down-payment assistance links, and a plain-English timeline.
• Add a mortgage calculator and a quick pre-qualification inquiry form that routes into your CRM.
• Publish short explainers on co-ownership agreements, ADU rules, and local rental regulations for house hacking.
• Market through Instagram, YouTube Shorts, and TikTok with 30–45 second explainers that link back to in-depth guides on your site.

With a MyRE site, you can host these tools, collect questions via embedded forms, and answer FAQs through an integrated AI assistant — so younger buyers get transparency and speed without sacrificing your expert guidance.

One agent, many generations: a multi-segment playbook

Today’s agent serves multiple generations at once — and each segment is motivated by different outcomes.

• Gen Z and Millennials want energy efficiency, modern tech, and remote-friendly layouts. Offer virtual tours, digital disclosures, and clear smart-home notes.
• Gen X seeks value stability, school quality, commute math, and mid-term equity growth. Provide comps, tax projections, and neighborhood trend charts.
• Baby Boomers prioritize comfort, safety, liquidity, and legacy planning. Highlight single-level living, low-maintenance exteriors, HOA services, and seller-friendly exit options.

How to operationalize this:

• Segment your database by age band, life stage, and intent in your CRM.
• Set up three email series — “Efficient Living,” “Stability and Schools,” and “Comfort and Legacy” — each with tailored listings, financing notes, and neighborhood stats.
• Build landing pages for each segment and route your ad traffic accordingly.

If your website runs on MyRE, we will help you connect CRM segments, automate email drips, and add per-segment landing pages and lead magnets — no coding required.

Turn demographic change into your advantage

Shifts in who buys homes are not a threat — they are a map. Agents who align messaging, service design, and tech with today’s buyer profiles build trust and take market share. Invest in digital infrastructure that makes your expertise tangible: a fast site with behavior analytics, social integrations, CRM workflows, calculators, and accessible video content. With MyRE, you get the platform and the support team to deploy these capabilities quickly — from segmented landing pages and AI chat to data blocks that answer the questions mature buyers actually ask. When the market changes, the prepared agent wins.

At MyRE, we know how fast the U.S. real estate market evolves — mortgage rates, buyer behavior, inventory levels, and marketing trends shift every month.
Our weekly insights help REALTORS® stay ahead of the curve, understand market changes, and make smarter business decisions.

Every strategy, tool, and technology we cover here — from IDX and CRM to automated marketing — is available inside your MyRE website.

You don’t need to be a tech expert — our platform makes modern real estate solutions simple, effective, and ready to use.

Start exploring smarter ways to grow your business today.

Trusted by 1,000+ agents across the U.S.