Zelman Insights

Exclusive insights and analyses from our industry-leading research team

Zelman Beige Book Index Provides Some Comfort Around Recessionary Fears

June 14, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

Eight times a year, the Federal Reserve publishes its Beige Book, a qualitative assessment of economic conditions around the country based on conversations with business executives. Incorporating publications dating back to 1970, we have constructed ...

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Filed Under
macro housing

Will Housing Demand Fall Off a Cliff as the Baby Boomers Age?

June 14, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

The Baby Boomers are commonly accepted as the generation that was born from 1946-64. For that 19-year period, there were 75.8 million births in the United States, which was an astounding 53% greater than the preceding 19 years – hence the generation’s ...

What Do Housing Unit Estimates by State Tell About Demographic Trends?

May 31, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

As most recently discussed in December, we have a proprietary process to analyze and estimate national housing units, households and vacancies, including our unique incorporation of residential electric customer ...

Core Births Drop Again as Young Adults Delay Life Events

May 17, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

According to preliminary estimates released by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), national births declined 1.7% in 2018 from 2017. This marks the tenth decline out of the last 11 years, leaving births 12% lower than their ...

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Filed Under
demographics

As Housing Sentiment and Actions Often Contradict, What Factors Matter Most?

May 17, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

Last week, Fannie Mae released the results of its monthly Home Purchase Sentiment Index, which is “designed to track consumers’ housing-related attitudes, intentions and perceptions.” As a research firm, we always find value in surveys, assuming ...

Zillow Has Ambitious iBuyer Goals, but Its Own Price Index Missed Market Shift

May 17, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

With more than 180 million unique monthly users of Zillow’s website or mobile app, the brand is clearly a dominant force with consumers. While it has historically monetized this audience indirectly through advertising sold to real estate professionals, ...

Income Analysis Suggests Future Firepower for Homeownership

May 03, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

For 1Q19, the Census Bureau’s Housing Vacancy and Homeownership Survey (HVS) estimated the national homeownership rate at 64.2%, unchanged from 1Q18. This is the first time out of the last eight quarters that homeownership did not increase ...

Single-Family Built-to-Rent Likely Here to Stay

April 19, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

Every month, we track interest in built-to-rent construction, along with other acquisition channels, in our proprietary survey of single-family rental operators. Over the last year, interest in partnering with homebuilders on built-to-rent ...

Where are the iBuyers Heading Next?

April 19, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

In recent years, iBuyers have gained notable attention and become a widespread topic of debate. Effectively the new-age version of “We Buy Ugly Houses”, which has been around since 1989, iBuyers charge sellers 7-10% of their home value in exchange ...

What Exactly are Young Adults Living at Home Up To?

April 05, 2019 by Zelman & Associates

Approximately 34% of young adults are living in their parents’ home, more than at any point over the last 50-plus years, which has remarkable consequences for housing demand. While this fact is well understood and has spawned many questions ...