5 Fast Stats on Baby Boomers and Real Estate

Just after World War II, between 1946 and 1964, the Baby Boomer generation was born. Today, they’re between the ages of 52 and 70, and although the group isn’t as large as millennials, they’re buying homes—and they’re buying plenty of them.

It’s not just that they’re buying in large numbers; millennials actually buy more homes than Baby Boomers do.

But they’re buying more expensive homes—and they have the financial backup to make solid purchases.

5 Fast Stats on Baby Boomers and Real Estate 

As Realtors®, it’s our job to know our markets. These statistics may make a positive impact on your marketing decisions:

1. Baby Boomers are all about the suburbs. As Baby Boomers moved from urban environments into the suburbs between 30 and 50 years ago, they found new homes in charming suburbs; the timeframe was just right for the entire generation, because they were each of an age that buying a home was affordable and feasible.

2. Baby Boomers have money. Nielsen says that 55+ year-olds have similar buying rates to millennials, and that this group makes up about 70 percent of the U.S.’s disposable income. Taking that one step further, Baby Boomers stand to inherit about $13 trillion over the next two decades.

3. Baby Boomers have remarkable brand loyalty. We all know that nostalgia is profitable—just look at the toys that are being remarketed from when we were children.

4. Baby Boomers plan to upgrade their homes. Statistics show that Baby Boomers aren’t looking for stuffy old retirement communities, either; they want new, upgraded homes that are part of vibrant communities. As many as 70 percent of Baby Boomers who plan to move out of their current homes believe that their retirement home will be the best home in which they’ve ever lived, research says.

5. Baby Boomers use social media, but not to post pictures of food on sites such as Instagram and Snapchat. You’ll find more Baby Boomers on Facebook and Twitter than you will on flash-in-the-pan social media sites that trend with the younger generations, so focusing there—particularly if you’re marketing to Baby Boomers—is probably your best bet.