In my last post, I shared some information about the explosive growth of New Americans in the United States, both in population size and buying power. Now let’s take a closer look at the people that new home sales professionals should be seeking.
The foreign-born population exceeded 40 million in 2010, an increase of 8.8 million since 2000. That means about one out of every eight people in the United States were born outside this country. We’re living in a country that is now more racially and ethnically diverse than ever.
The 2010 U.S. Census showed that the population grew by 27.3 million people over that decade—and 15.2 million of them were Hispanics. They also contributed 49 percent to the 12.5 million increase in homeownership over that same period. Housing surveys have shown that 57 percent of Hispanics consider homeownership as a symbol of success. When you compare that number to the 33 percent of all Americans who feel that way, you can see that the desire to own a home is strong, so they are highly motivated homebuyers.
Minority homeownership now accounts for almost half—48 percent—of all homeowners. So, if you’re not selling one out of every two homes to a New American, you have an exceptional opportunity here!
The truth is, the minorities of this country are going to become the majority. The sooner you can appreciate this shift, the sooner you can help them find the new homes they want.
In its report, “American Marketscape DataStream: 2012 Executive Summary Report”, Geoscape summarized some important findings about our population shift:
- Once all the numbers are tabulated, the total aggregate spending for the African American consumer in 2011 is expected to exceed $560 billion.
- Nearly 93 percent of population growth from 2012 to 2017 will come from Hispanics, Asians, and African Americans.
- Asians top the list in terms of annual household income. More than 63 percent of Asian households earn more than $50,000 a year.
- On average, Hispanic households in 2012 will spend $400,000 more than White non-Hispanic households for the remainder of their lifetimes, partly due to their younger ages and longer life expectancy.
HUD’s 2010 Home Mortgage Disclosure Act lender activity report showed that minorities received 46 percent of FHA loans for owner-occupied homes. Sixty percent of African Americans and 59 percent of Hispanics used FHA loans to finance the purchase of their homes.
If you want more in-depth information about working with multicultural homebuyers, you can download my ebook, “New Home Sales Training: Selling New Homes In a Multicultural America”. And stay tuned for this continuing series of blogs on the subject.
Next: Where are the New Americans looking to buy a home?
