2011 Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey

Jessica LautzJuly 6, 2011

Methodology

• Online panel• Based on representative panel of U.S. households• 1,895 households responded—represents 1,926 home

purchases

Share of Sales

Share of Home Sales

Share of Sales 2010-2003

Buyer Characteristic

s

Buyer Demographics

Primary Buyers

Vacation Buyers

Investment Buyers

Median Age 37 49 45

Median Household Income $69,600 $99,500 $87,600

Percent With 2 Income Earners 50% 53% 48%

Racial/Ethnic Background

White/Caucasian 80% 78% 75%

Asian/Pacific Islander 9 10 15

Black/African American 6 7 7

Hispanic/Latino 6 8 7

Age Vacation and Investment Buyers 2005-2010

Income Vacation and Investment Buyers 2005-2010

Property Characteristics

Property Differences

Primary Buyers

Vacation Buyers

Investment Buyers

Median Distance to Primary NA 375 19

Location

Small town 16% 22% 25%

Rural area 17 26 17

Suburb/Subdivision 49 24 33

Urban area/Central City 18 9 18

Resort area 0 19 7

Type of Home

Detached single-family 80% 70% 63%

Townhouse or row house 6 4 5

Condo/duplex 12 21 29

Purchasing and Financing

First Step in the Home Search

Primary Buyers

Vacation Buyers

Investment Buyers

Looked online for properties for sale 28% 29% 20%

Looked online for information about the home buying process 17 11 11

Contacted a real estate agent 11 13 16

Talked with a friend or relative about the home buying process 10 9 11

Drove-by homes/neighborhoods 8 8 10

Visited open houses 8 6 8

How Buyer Purchased the Home

Difficulty of Financing

Investment and Vacation Buyers Used a Mortgage 2007-2011

Percent of Home FinancedVacation Buyers Investment Buyers

Less than 50% 20 16

50% to 59% 13 19

60% to 69% 21 15

70% to 79% 20 15

80% to 89% 1 16

90% to 94% 4 5

95% to 99% 1 2100% – Financed the entire purchase price with a mortgage 5 12

Median percent financed 68 70

Motivation and Expectations

Reasons for Purchasing Home

 Vacation

PropertiesInvestmentProperties

To use for vacations or as a family retreat 84% 16%To use as principal residence in the future 34 10To rent to others 27 51

To diversify investments/Good investment opportunity 25 45

For a family member, friend or relative 14 21

Because the buyer had extra money to spend 11 10

For the tax benefits 9 13

Length of Time Plan on Owning

Outlook of Buyers

• 52% of investment buyers and 34% of vacation buyers are likely to buy again in the next 2 years

• 80% of vacation buyers and 77% of investment buyers think it’s a good time to purchase real estate

For More Information

• Download the report here: http://www.realtor.org/prodser.nsf/products/E186-55-11?OpenDocument

• Follow NAR Research on Facebook and Twitter and Blog: http://www.facebook.com/narresearchgroup

http://twitter.com/NAR_Research http://economistsoutlook.blogs.realtor.org/