Real Estate Pro: Industry Needs to Change with Millennials

As Millennials hit the home-buying age, one expert says the old sales pitch just won’t work on this new generation.

David Rice, the founder of New Home Star, tells FBN’s Jeff Flock in a Conference Room interview that the real estate industry needs to be responsive to the Millennial mindset. New Home Star helps homebuilders market and sell their properties.

“You see two different types of companies right now in homebuilding. One is responsive to the market and they’re seeing change and responding in a way that provides new product in new places, and you see the others and they’re struggling because they’re trying to continue to do things the same way and not change with the changing consumer,” says Rice. “You know, necessity is the mother of invention … and right now, there’s a need for housing to be responsive to the changing consumer.”

There’s a big change, says Rice, when it comes to location. Formerly, Rice says first-time homebuyers were willing to drive as far as necessary until they could afford to buy.

“Now the most sophisticated builders today are finding the opportunity to come in closer in to where those Millennials want to purchase and provide something there that fits into their lifestyle,” says Rice.

Rice says the traditional American Dream of buying a home – while still alive and well -- has undergone a transformation due to the Great Recession.

“The same people we’re hoping will come in to the market for their first homes today are the same people who saw their parents lose a home, or saw their parents lose massive wealth during homeownership,” says Rice. “And in that way, there’s a lot of recovery still to be had in terms of buyer confidence and the desire for homeownership.”