The average age of the South African home buyer continued to rise in 2016 according to FNB’s annual 1st Time and Age Group Home Buying report.<\/p>\n
The average age of individual property buyers\u00a0has increased from 40.92 years in 2007 to 44.4 years by 2016\u00a0– an increase\u00a0from 43.82 years in 2015.<\/p>\n
This has been helped by a weakening in the first-time home buyer segment in the past 2 years or so, and an increased number of ageing home owners down-scaling to smaller homes\u00a0due to “life stage”.<\/p>\n
According to FNB, a very significant factor at play is a strong growth rate in age cohorts in their 50s and 60s who have reached a stage where they wish to\u00a0downscale due to “life stage”.<\/p>\n
These ageing home owners now form a very significant part of the home repeat buyer market as they downscale, FNB said.<\/p>\n
“Selling to downscale due to life stage refers most often to home owners whose children have left home, or they are merely becoming too old to maintain a larger home, and so the decide to downscale to a smaller or cheaper home.”<\/p>\n
The report also showed a decline of first-time buyers entering the market in 2016, with first time buyers making\u00a0up an estimated 20% of total buying. This represents the 2nd straight year of decline from a 26.5% in 2014 and 24.25% in 2015.<\/p>\n Cape Town returns by far the lowest estimated 1st time buyer percentage of 13%. By comparison, the major Gauteng regions of Greater Joburg and Tshwane return far higher estimates of 22% and 24% respectively.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/Average-Age.jpg\")
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