NAR: 2nd-Home Owners Older Than Believed

The typical owner of multiple residences is significantly older than previously believed, new research by the National Association of Realtors has found.Earlier data extrapolated from the NAR?s semiannual profile of all buyers and sellers had pegged the median age at a relatively young 46. But a new survey that NAR chief economist David Lereah believes will now become the benchmark for the second market found that the median age is really 61. The survey, released over the weekend at the NAR?s annual convention in New Orleans, also discovered that the second-home market is far larger than originally thought, accounting for roughly 6% of all homes sold annually. And in what Mr. Lereah called "another real surprise," the survey of 3,100 owners found that most buy second homes as vacation spots. Only 22% are buying another residence purely as an investment play. But either way, they are seeing their second properties appreciate at a much faster pace than their primary residences. The study found that prices in the second-home sector rose nearly 27% from 1999 to 2001.