Millennial First-Time Homebuyers and Location Choice

Abstract

We research whether Millennial first-time homebuyers are more likely to purchase homes near city centers than Generation X. We use a random sample of individual credit records data to examine first-time mortgaged homebuyers from 2000 to 2016 in the fifty largest US cities. In a logistic regression controlling for age and generation, we estimate separate age and period effects. We also control for car ownership, income, credit score, mortgage size, mortgage payment, and student debt levels. We find that the odds Millennials buy near city centers 21 percent higher than Generation X. This suggests that as Millennials purchase homes, they do not move to the suburbs at the same rate as Generation X.