Those who think the U.S. is turning into a country of renters need worry no more, according to Jed Kolko,
“Consumers change very slowly,” he said during his presentation at SourceMedia’s Buying & Selling Distressed Mortgage Portfolios Forum in New York. “Don’t assume boom-and-bust movements are long-term shifts.”
Trulia data suggest the so-called American dream mentality is very much alive. Americans not only want to buy, he said, but “they want to buy big.”
The top regret for homeowners was that they wished they bought a bigger home.
Up to 93% of 18- to 34-year-old renters want to buy someday, he said.
When renter respondents to a recent Trulia survey were asked what has been their biggest regret in the context of how they should have managed risks and opportunities arising during the foreclosure crisis, the top regret was that they wished they had bought rather than rented.
Renters also said they wished they lived in the suburbs and had easier access to restaurants and other commercial services.
Americans still want to move to the suburbs, Kolko said, adding that more consumers move to the suburbs from the metro areas rather than the other way around, showing this trend has not changed.
Consumer behavior takes a very long time to change, he said. Some of the factors that lead to such very long-term consumer behavior changes include housing finance system regulation, demographics, taxes such as those consumers pay on property, changes that affect commuting to work and transportation costs such as gas prices, and environmental policies.
