6 in 10 Homeowners ‘Never Plan to Move’

Want to know why housing inventories are so low? According to Bankrate, New York, one reason is that people simply aren’t planning to move.

A new Bankrate survey reported 62 percent of current homeowners do not “ever” plan to move; the remainder anticipate staying in their current home for a median of five years.

The survey (https://www.bankrate.com/mortgages/financial-security-0418/) said while a clear majority of homeowners (79%) do not plan on moving in the next half-decade, 35% say they are likely to remodel, upgrade or add to their current home during that time. Over the next five years, the likelihood of making improvements to the current home exceeds the likelihood of moving to a new home across all age and income brackets.

The survey also reported 21% of Americans own their primary home without a mortgage, while another 32% are currently paying one off. The median reported mortgage rate is 3.95%. However, nearly three in 10 mortgage holders (29%) either don’t know or won’t say what their mortgage rate is. That number is even higher for Millennials (ages 18-37, 37%) and Gen Xers (ages 38-53, 35%), which Bankrate.com Senior Economist Mark Hamrick said is “a troubling statistic for those who could benefit from a good refinancing opportunity.”

“Americans are essentially staying put in their homes for the foreseeable future, either by choice, or by necessity or some combination,” Hamrick said. “Because of this, prospective homebuyers are finding a real lack of quality, affordable inventory, which can lead to bidding wars and risky overspending.”

The survey said the propensity to own a home increases with age and income level. Thirty-nine percent of both Gen Xers and Baby Boomers (ages 54-72) say they have a mortgage on their primary home, the most likely age groups, while 27% of younger Boomers (ages 54-63), 38% of older Boomers (ages 64-72) and 51% of The Silent Generation (ages 73+) own a home without a mortgage.

Sixty-one percent of those ages 18-30 say they do not own their main home. However, older Millennials (ages 31-37) are equally as likely to own a home than not (43%).

Bankrate.com commissioned YouGov Plc to conduct the survey. Total sample size was 2,194 adults, including 1,330 adults who own their primary residence. Fieldwork was undertaken on April 5 online.