Provident Bank recently released the results of its First-Time Home Buyer Survey, finding, despite challenges in the market, first-time buyers are largely finding homes in less than a year. Overall, about three-quarters of those surveyed answered they found their home within the first year of looking. However, some buyers have had to rethink their budgets during their search. About 37% of respondents said they had to decrease their budgets either significantly or slightly; but about 30% said they had to increase their budget slightly or significantly. In terms of reasons given for why respondents adjusted their budgets, high mortgage rates, lack of homes within their original budget and recent job loss or financial setback were the top three responses.

Looking specifically at budget adjustments by age group, more than 50% of Gen X have had to significantly adjust their search criteria to stay within budget. In addition, 50% of both millennial and Gen X respondents stated that they’ve settled for an older home that needs renovations to complete buying process, compared with only 39% of Gen Z respondents. As for how respondents are paying for their homes, more than half of respondents said their savings accounts are their main source of capital. The next most-popular response was access to first-time home buyer program grants. The top three challenges listed by respondents in their home search were rising/high interest rates, rising/high asking prices and lack of homes to choose from.

Source: The Mortgage Bankers Association