Big Homes Make a Comeback

The new-home market appears to be catering more to older, more affluent buyers and less to younger and first-time buyers. In the second quarter, the average size of a new home was 2,642 square feet — which tops the record 2,561 square feet set in the first quarter of 2009 during the housing boom, according to Census statistics. The 5.2 percent increase in the size of new homes from April to June marks the largest quarterly gain since the Commerce Department started tracking the data on a quarterly basis in 1987. Move-up buyers are benefiting from factors such as job stability and rising stock-market wealth, but not first timers. “The first-time buyer now has to come up with 20 percent down payment and a pristine credit score, and that’s harder to do,” explained Stephen Melman, director of economic services for the National Association of Home Builders. First-time buyers have accounted for 29 percent of home transactions so far this year — down from the typical 40 percent since the 1980s, according to the National Association of Realtors. | Read More