Why the real estate industry needs to pay attention to Gen Y?

The hot topic at this year's Urban Land Institute Fall Meeting was Generation Y: who are they, and what do they want when it comes to Real Estate? It's an interesting time for Real Estate; Gen Y isn't quite old enough to hold important decision-making roles in the industry, but they're about to become its largest customer. Every day it becomes more important to know what Gen Y wants, and how we can reach them.
 
"Gen Y" is the group of young adults currently between the ages of 17 and 34. Also known as the "Echo Boomers" and a handful of other names, Gen Y is the largest demographic in America; there are roughly 80 million living in the United States today. This number is expected to continue growing, as new immigrants usually arrive as young adults. 
 
Apart from the sheer size of the population, why should we care about Gen Y? Being 17-34 means a few key things: the younger Gen Y'ers are just starting their careers and are moving away from home, and the older members are at key positions in life with semi-established careers and are looking to buy homes. Simply put: they're in the market. 


GEN Y: WHO ARE THEY?

 Let's start with some recent U.S. statistics for Gen Y:
- 40% are married or partnered
- 30% have children
- An equal amount live in Urban, Suburban and Small Towns/Rural areas.
- 35% are homeowners
- 20% live with their parents
- 37% are renters
- 6% live in university/college housing
- 2% live in mobile homes
 Generally speaking, Gen Y'ers are savvy with technology and Social Media, they're always "connected", they're outspoken, educated, civic minded, somewhat pampered (they grew up without much hardship in the world), and optimistic. So optimistic, in fact, that 91% expect they'll make enough money to live the life they want, and 90% plan to become homeowners eventually.

GEN Y: WHAT DO THEY WANT IN LIFE? 
A shift is occurring between Gen X and Gen Y. Materialism is being replaced by "Experiencism"; Gen Y'ers prefer to pay for experiences and services over goods. A recent marketing survey showed the "ability to make me smile" is 33% more important to Gen Y'ers than to Boomers. 

One of the things that makes Gen Y smile is family. Maintaining a work-life balance is extremely valued: Gen Y likes spending as much time with family and friends as possible. Most like the area where they grew up, so they aren't moving far from home.
Interestingly, Gen Y is a generation of sharers. Sharing and rental programs are becoming increasingly popular. From car shares like Car2Go to tool libraries and even art and wedding dress sharing programs, Gen Y would rather pay for something only when they need it, and not hold onto it afterward.

GEN Y: WHAT DO THEY WANT IN REAL ESTATE?

 They may like to share goods, but Gen Y doesn't like to share their space. There's an increasing demand for studio and 1-bedroom apartments. Apartment size is less of a factor (far less important than price), and amenities such as gyms, dog walks, dog washing stations, bike racks, storage and common areas are in higher demand.

As more Gen Y'ers move out of their parents' homes and head to the Inner City (popular but surprisingly not as pervasive as expected), the use of cars is declining. This is an important factor when Gen Y'ers choose their neighborhoods; close amenities and transit accessibility are more important than ever.

Within homes, open spaces are important for the entertaining socialites, as is a space's flexibility and ability to be customized.

GEN Y: HOW DO WE REACH THEM?

As distrust in traditional marketing reaches an all-time high, and attention spans reach an all-time low, new tactics are needed to appeal to this demographic. Not only is a shift to a strong online presence necessary, but messaging strategies need to evolve as well. For starters, everything you do should have multiple stimuli, clean design, and get your point across in as few words as possible.
 
Finally, with Gen Y sharing information at unprecedented levels, great customer service has become absolutely critical. Peer reviews are more important than they've ever been, with 84% of Gen Y'ers saying online/peer reviews have some influence on a purchase decision.

While Gen Y may seem like an enigma to today's Real Estate professionals, reaching them will get easier as they start to move into decision-making roles in the industry. But if you want a competitive edge today, getting your finger on the pulse of Gen Y is essential.

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