When it comes to making home purchases, the timeline usually goes something like this: first I desire, then I buy, then I own. Over the years, I've thought long and hard about each of these elements, but for whatever reason, I've never really called the order into question. Recently, though, some articles have been crossing my path that have made me think more seriously about how ownership itself could be changing my buying habits.
A couple of months ago, NPR intern Emily White came under fire for her admission that despite owning over 11,000 MP3s, she had only ever purchased fifteen albums. In the backlash that followed, it became a common theme that the resistance to buying music is particular to a younger generation, which is more familiar with the new modes of technology that make such practices easier. Taken alongside The Atlantic's claims that young Americans are also no longer buying cars or homes, one might wonder where they're spending their money.
But when talking about such large-scale patterns of consumption, it really may not be fair to look only at a particular generation. In a recent Fast Company piece, Josh Allan Dykstra pointed out that the Millennials aren't unique in their reluctance. Instead, he argued,
Humanity is experiencing an evolution in consciousness. We are starting to think differently about what it means to "own" something....the reason we acquire "stuff" is becoming more about what we get from the acquisition. Purchasing something isn't really about the thing itself anymore. Today, a product or service is powerful because of how it connects people to something--or someone--else.
According to Dykstra, all generations are undergoing a change in consumption in which our spending is no longer oriented toward "ownership," but toward mastery, communication, simplicity, community, and connection. Ultimately, his three takeaway points for entrepreneurs are, "People buy things because of what they can do with them," People buy things because of what they can tell others about it," and "People buy things because of what having it says about them."
I'm not sure how truly new any of this is (since consumption is always related to social practices) or even how much I'm willing to go whole hog with Dykstra's claims (since spending is also deeply tied to larger economic trends, as Logan Sachon points out), but Dykstra does at least pose an interesting point. Is the way that we spend money on our homes and in our daily lives more oriented toward products that encourage new types of connection? Are you more inclined to buy things, as he suggests, because they foster a deeper sense of community or a sense of empowerment? Could this be why we're gradually ditching the formal dining room in favor of more informal, conversation-oriented spaces or why we're constantly trying to find ways to simplify our lives? And on the technological side, how does being so digitally connected change the way that we build, think about, or live in our homes? Has new media inspired a contant yearning for a lifestyle we don't have or a tendency to over-share and over-care?
If Dykstra's right, this new mode of ownership could have some serious shortcomings. It could mean that we've developed expectations about getting things for free or that we're constantly changing the look of our homes in order to be part of a virtual community, both of which have serious effects on artists, designers, and the environment. But on the flip side, I find some elements of this new idea of ownership rather appealing. If our purchasing truly is spurred by a desire for communication and mastery, it might be leading us to re-think and re-tool our environments so they better suit our lives, to take more control of our homes, and to communicate freely about some of our most personal spaces, moments, and needs.
Ellen's Thirties Style Small Space
Juan's Garage Turned Modern Guest House
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Commercial Flour Sa...
How to Cook Rice on the Stove
Recipe: Thai Ginger Chicken Stir-Fry
Hopefully there's also an environmental consciousness that's driving people to own less as acquisition becomes increasingly unsustainable and irresponsible.
Also, it is kind of a silly practice when people gut renovate perfectly functional kitchens and bathrooms. It seems that people are more inclined to do that than slap on a new coat of paint, resurface things or repair minor damage.
It's just frustrating to see post after post on AT, where people rip out solid wood, custom cabinets that could easily be refurbished and replace them with crappy particleboard from IKEA that will fall apart in 5 years. The solid wood cabinets in my home are 50 years old and in great shape, and refinished to look up to date. There is no way that IKEA garbage is getting into my home.
amen particleman! you should change your name to "solid" man. I have a 1982 home that has been buffed, painted, and polished...but never gutted.
all other forms of consumption aside and speaking strictly of the home purchase, I think young people (myself included) still see the value of owning their own home be it economical or as an investment in their community , but have largely been left out of being ABLE to purchase said home. We are on the trough end of a deep and continuous slide in wages , and continue to be shut out of a housing market that has yet to correct itself in a meaningful way. Add our college debt to the mix and renters are we. Buying a home isn't the same as owning one, I think we are pretty clear on banking industry shennanigans, but I for one still believe that buying into a home where you plan to put down roots can foster community connection and engenders an important sense of civic responsibility, unity. I dont just want a house so I can send in photos to this site showing off my latest reno, but alas I cant yet afford one.
I also think that younger generations have to choose between paying for an education or paying for a home nowadays. I think this cycle is true in the United States anyway. You can't afford to buy a home unless you have a good job. You can't get a decent job without a college education. You can't afford to buy a home because now you owe $80,000 to Sallie Mae but you now have a college education. There are probably other factors to consider but I think this is a big one.
I'd argue that the ultimate driving factor behind all buying is gaining a sense of completeness, whether it's a rug that really ties the room together or a shoe that finishes off a certain look. Even a practical purchase like a car for commuting delivers a sense of completeness by filling a void. Something was missing (a way to get to work) and the car fills that empty place. The completeness is satisfying.
Where buying can get out of hand is when we're looking to fill an unrelated void with stuff. I think that's where the social aspect comes into play. If you buy something as an impetus for social interaction, then the product is not the end goal, it's the vehicle that brings you to the end goal of connecting with someone. The sense of completeness comes when you've made a connection. This is when the goods themselves become disposable. It's why teenage girls suddenly all own the same jeans. It's why similar projects show up on multiple design blogs in a short span of time. When a product is a means to an end instead of the end itself, we don't have the same kind of emotional connection to it. Because we don't need to connect just once -- we need to connect again and again, so suddenly we need more stuff.
The major way that social networking has changed this is that information often has priority over stuff now. You don't need to buy stuff in order to post photos and funny links on Facebook. When you can make a connection with images and information, suddenly you can bypass the buying. Your completeness comes when someone comments on your photo or likes your link.
Concerning the home purchase issue. The reason people aren't buying homes is because they likely perceive the risk of a problem with ownership as too high, the cost of buying a home as too high, and/or the long-term cost of the purchase plus maintenance costs in money, time, and energy to be higher than they care to shoulder.
Consider recent events in the housing market and economy. Why should someone be eager to own a home after experiencing or observing their parents, friends, acquaintences, etc. loose houses or incur huge losses in the collapse of an overinflated real estate market? And let's face it, price declines experienced in major metropolitan areas in many cases only brought the cost of housing down from astronomical to unreasonable, meaning the purchase of a home remains unaffordable for many. So the question becomes, why bother chasing after something that could either burden you, burn you, or preclude the consideration of other life choices? Hence people invest their money, time and effort in something a lot more fulfilling.
By the way, lack of home ownership in a community does not engender lack of interest in the community. Home ownership simply provides an economic incentive for community interest.
I bought my house in 2006, when it was extremely easy to get a loan. Now the house has very serious problems and I can't afford to move because of the market and how much it would cost to fix the problems first. It's soured me on home ownership. I feel like it's a money pit. Interestingly, my husband, whose name is not on the mortgage or house, is strongly against ever renting again. I think it's that he likes that we can really "do our own thing" with our house and property.
I totally agree with particleman! And not only in the US but also in Europe (The Netherlands). When we were looking for a house 6 months ago, all the kitchens of the houses we visited were ultra modern but were all made with particleboard and had plastic coated countertops. We eventually bought a house with a custom made solid wood kitchen and a real terazzo countertop. Our house was actually cheaper than other houses because of the 'dated' kitchen. Well, good for us :)
I'm a millennial and there are a couple of reasons I don't own a home. The first is the one that a couple of commenters have hit on already: I can't afford it. I don't have a solid savings that could provide a good down payment, let alone one that would leave me with money leftover for the inevitable necessary repairs. Bring able to pay my landlord a steady sum each month and have all maintenance covered is a pretty sweet gig.
But really, even if I could afford it, I wouldn't buy a home because I'm not ready to stay in one place. I love where I live, but I want the freedom to leave if I need to for work. I know way too many people whose career options are limited because they own a home and they can't sell it.
I think that as a country, we've spent way too many years overemphasizing home ownership. I'm glad to see things swinging the other way a bit.
I think we've gained a more well-rounded sense of satisfaction and perspective from owning a home. Yes, there's upkeep, and we're making renovations that we otherwise (in a rental) would not have made, but we're learning more about how to take care of ourselves and a home, which is almost like a living being, with its quirks and weird nooks and crannies. This experience is very different, and at times difficult, but ultimately more satisfying than being a persistent renter.
I feel very fortunate in that I was able to buy my apt a year ago in what is an overly inflated market (Brooklyn, NYC). Inflated, or not, it's still much cheaper than renting, and it will be an investment (once my kitchen is gutted of its particleboard cabinets and cheap appliances) because surely the prices will not deflate here. But because I have higher expenses now, casual buying and buying for the home has been more or less curtailed. I buy if something is sorely needed, other wise it's delayed. For example - 've been without curtains for 6 months in my bedroom, but now that the residents of the apartment across me have moved in, i guess I'll be buying curtains soon!
FTR, I'm a millenial too. Buying a home in an expensive market was difficult, but doable once we readjusted our expectations.
Great topic.
Ditto PI, I just became a house owner for the first time, and it gives me such a warm and fuzzy feeling when I work on the house, even though most of the house is not to my style yet. It's almost like adding a beloved member to the family, my afterwork routine now consists of walking the dog, cooking for husband AND tending the garden and working on the house.
I never felt this way about all my previous rental apartments...
I work in the property business in Europe, and the problem for many young people is not being able to afford to buy, and forced into renting. However, because of the shortage of rental property, monthly rental payments are now overtaking monthly loan or mortgage repayments. French banks in particular will not lend to anyone without a secure permanent job, which leaves out the huge majority of short-term/seasonal/part-time contract workers, the self employed and those struggling to run a small business. The result is it becomes increasingly difficult to save for a deposit on a home while paying ever increasing rentals.
This is one of the factors (and of course the whole of the Euro-zone crisis) encouraging many people to question the whole idea of consumerism, to downsize, to rely less on their cars, to reduce energy consumption, and to become more environmentally responsible and community minded.
For me there was a huge psychological shift in renting vs owning. With renting I didn't feel passionate about changing or decorating as I always knew we'd be leaving or I'd have to paint it back based on landlord rules. With our home, it feels like we're prouder to do things for it and make it feel like a home. I know this isn't the case for everyone but for me it was quite profound how different I felt.
Traditional house or bust.
One other thing to consider, that some of the things we "own" are only used to provide a service. We buy a car to get us from point a to point b, not to own the engine. We own a TV to bring us television shows, not for the components within.
William McDonough calls this "cradle to cradle." Buying something to use it's services and then returning it to the manufacturer for re-use. This philosophy has spread to homes.
http://www.mcdonough.com/cradle_to_cradle.htm
"...one might wonder where they're spending their money." I actually giggled. What money?
I know, I know. But seriously, so many of us are out of work or underpaid, at 26 a house of my own is a sort of 5-10 year plan, but I'm working on it!
Why aren't young people buying? BECAUSE THEY'RE BROKE.
There are a lot of reasons, but most of them are financial.
Houses cost a lot.
Inflation.
Wages have not followed the curve of inflation for 30 plus years.
Houses are a large responsibility. I.E. They are a money sink.
Most young people have enough debt as it is, adding a mortgage is just absurd.
I think there is a big difference between downloading music for free, the decision to buy or forgo a formal dining room, and buying a home or a car.
@nereid already summed up the home ownership issue.
Getting music for free has been a trend long coming. Downloading music is just the logical extension of borrowing tapes from your friends to copy them. Given the opportunity, most kids in the 80s would have done the same thing the NPR intern did. It's easy to rationalize doing this because you are not taking anything physical and you are not causing damage to the owner.
I would say the trend to forgo formal dining rooms is part of a larger trend to a more casual culture - people now wear jeans to the symphony and formal restaurants which used to be a No-No. Is a more casual culture part of a larger trend to seek things that connect you with your community? I think it's the other way around - people are looking for connections to their immediate community because we live in such a casual and global environment where everything is allowed. In a world full of things made by somebody in China I will never meet, it is great to actually meet the person who made the item I am buying. A lot of marketing campaigns make that same effort (IBM's "I'm an IBMer" comes to mind). I think this also reflects in the trend to buy fewer but more expensive things as people rediscover local craftsmen and buy "Made in the USA" (obviously, this only applies to people who can afford to do so).
Case in point: a local sheep farmers association makes wool blankets and sells out every year despite the fact that the blankets are more expensive than what you would find in most stores. There is a connection to the blankets: if you ever wanted to, you could go meet the sheep that produced the wool you are now using the keep you warm.
Young people don't have money! I just finished college and I've only made $6,000 this year. I'm lucky my electricity is still on and that I'm not living in my car.
The last thing on my mind is a house. Personally I feel like buying a house is yet another way to become a slave to a bank, and I'm all set with that. Young people are faced with choices that just lead them into debt one way or another, maybe that's why my generation doesn't want to "own" so much stuff?
Echoing others; owning a house at this point is just not worth the risk. We bought a home in 2007 and due to a job change, sold at a massive loss in 2009. It's been three years and I don't even want to talk about it. Why wouldn't I rent a nice place and let someone else maintain it and fix it when the toilet crumbles or the heat stops working? I may want to own again in the future, but not today.
Also, my husband and I are 25 and 30, and like others mentioned, are still paying for school. Most of our peers are totally broke, and very few own anything of value. We feel lucky to be able to rent a house, have one car, and pay our bills.
In addition to many folks not having the means to purchase a home, I also think many are very mobile and choose not to be tied down by home ownership.
stuff is expensive. houses are expensive. i like to think how many hours i have to work for that stuff. it makes me think twice if i really want to spend hard earned money on something. i don't want to be a slave to my job. i don't want it to rule my life so that i can buy stuff i don't need.
based on the comments, it's good to see that people are coming to their senses... i would have a lot more money if i just rented and didn't buy a home.
but i did get to adopt a couple of pets that needed homes, so i feel lucky that they are a part of my life.
Echoing everyone else - we're 29 - bought a house in 2006, short sold in 2009 at a huge loss and have $350k+ in student loan debt from getting a doctorate and being underwater in the house... and now we make so very little, we'll be in debt for a lifetime, not exactly willing (or able) to take out more debt.
I know that college is expensive - but how many people have debt because they "had" to go to a certain college and took out loans to do so when there were cheaper alternatives? I know people who have allowed their children to make that choice and tonight I was listening to someone on NPR talk about her decision to make her kids happy that way. Despite the economy and the job situation, it keeps happening.
This is not to ignore the employment situation and very real college costs - but we're there no less expensive ways to get an education?
Young people are still consuming...in the only way they can. They aren't buying homes because of a shift in consciousness. But because they can't. Most of the best properties are still owned by the baby boomers.
The article and the comments were very interesting to me. I'm not young (49), but I have owned a manufactured home, a stick built home and a condo over the years. I'm in the service industry so I don't make a ton of money. I'm currently renting and I love it. I live close to work in a very upscale neighborhood. I could never afford to buy a house in my neighborhood, but I can rent a very nice apartment for a decent price. I don't know if I'll every buy another place, but I'm very happy where I'm at now in my life.
this change in ideas and behaviors in nothing new. when i was in college (1997-2001) i came across the book "the cultural creatives," published in 2000. It stated that in 2000, there were 50 million americans.(1/4 of the population) could be classified as a cultural creative.
it describes exactly what everyone here is talking about (more or less): environmental awareness, social awareness, conscious consumerism, relationships, equality, less concerned about "making it". it's a shift in thoughts and actions and has been a long time in the making.
i'm 33 and have thought this way my whole life. i learned from my parents.
Young people are not buying homes because they can not afford to save for a down payment. Between inflated rent, student loans, medical insurance ( because most companies don't offer what they used to!)...who can save any money?
My husband and I were very lucky, my parents were able to give us a nice down payment, and now we have a mortgage that is much less than we were paying in rent.Yes we now have maintenance costs and property taxes, but long term we are better off. We still don't have a savings account, but we get by, pay all our bills and we have a place to call our own. We feel very blessed.
We have a number of friends who were also given this wonderful gift.....but we do not know one person, whose parents can not help them, who owns a home or is even thinking about buying. At 31-35 years old, most of them still see home ownership as a dream that is still 5-10 years out.
What the younger and older people alike don't understand is that our economy isn't changing. It. Has. Changed. We are no longer a culture of hard workers and savers who are working toward a house and a pension and stability. Our government is upending, we have no hope of security - social or otherwise - under our current heading, and the iceberg is getting bigger by the second.
I would love to think that the current trends are my generation looking at the intrinsic value of something and realizing that what they are paying for has no real worth. But the reality is our parents didn't teach us how to handle money, so no, we can't afford houses. Not because the housing market is ridiculously out of whack (which it is), but because the words "save," "invest," and "wisdom" have seeped out of our vocabulary.
Am I offended that a girl decided not to waste money on a plastic disc that loses 80-90% of its value as soon as she takes the plastic off the case? No. Am I offended that the government is hard-selling a version of the future where those who worked hard to save and invest are robbed to give money to the lazy and the uneducated? The question isn't why am I offended, but why aren't you?
Wow. Soap box.
Things have changed. Employment means different things than it did 30 years ago.
I am a 29 yo married woman who just finished graduate school. Since graduating from undergraduate college (taking loans for both) I have moved no less than 6 times for jobs, school, to cut transportation costs, relationships (both good, bad, friendship and later marriage!) and all of this has prevented me from putting down roots. Now that I am married, my husband will be starting a new job that will move us every two years. Even without his career, I would expect to need to move multiple times in order to dive into my career deeper.
Being in your late 20's/early 30's no longer means settling down buying your starter home, and moving up the street in a few years when you get a promotion and the babies demand more space (apparently they specifically ask?). Moving often requires organization, and owning less.
"Am I offended that a girl decided not to waste money on a plastic disc that loses 80-90% of its value as soon as she takes the plastic off the case? No"
You probably would be if you were the artist who relied on selling that "plastic disc" that's just a "waste of money" for a living, who'd just had part of their wages stolen.
And I'm offended that the people who choose to steal music reduce the chances of the artists whose music I love being able to make a living, and so reduces the chances of their being more awesome music to enjoy.
Also, you can buy digital downloads - there's no need for actual plastic discs.
I bought a home soon after graduating from college, on a single salary. It was very affordable and small, and I invested sweat equity fixing it up. A few years later I have moved to expensive CA for a job, and I find that I pay 4 times what I payed in a mortgage just to rent a decent space here. I loved everything about owning, and I am planning to move somewhere more affordable again. Right now the cons outweigh the pros, and I can't justify a $400,000 mortgage for a 600 SF house with termite damage.
I am in my thirties, and while i didn't have to deal so much with the economy in my mid-twenties, think the timetable has just been moved back. Twenty-somethings are doing what I did: moving to a big city for a while and remaining single for longer. I lived in DC and was broke, and could never have afforded to buy a home on my own. I had a wonderful time there, and made lifelong friends, but my job connections, along with the stress of being broke all the time, led me eventually to a medium-sized city where my husband and i, both teachers, live very comfortably in a beautiful bungalow in a lovely old neighborhood.
Our situation is different from many others in that we were both raised not to have debt, which he is great about, and I made a point to pay off the little that I had with a teaching job in Japan between DC and here. So we have been freed up a lot. But I will say if you can find a job, smaller cities are the ticket, from my point-of-view.