Experian: Most Millennials Not Ready for Homebuying

Aug 23, 2018

A new study released by Experian is warning that many Millennials need to improve their financial positions before becoming actively involved in homebuying.

According to Experian’s data, only 15 percent of Millennials currently have a mortgage, while 39 percent of Millennials without a mortgage have a prime or better score. The majority of this youthful demographic are facing higher delinquency rates in their consumer credit activities: Millennial delinquency rates as of the fourth quarter of 2017 was 2.08 percent for younger Millennials (ages 22-28) and 1.51 percent for older Millennials (29-35), compared to the national delinquency rate of 1.32 percent.

In terms of credit scoring, the average consumer VantageScore is 677, and Experian added credit scores generally become more prime (661-780) as people age. In comparison, younger Millennials have an average near prime score of 652 with older Millennials at the prime score of 665.

“This data presents good news for younger, thin file millennials interested in buying a home. We’re seeing that small changes in financial behaviors such as building a history of on time payments and improved credit practices can help lenders shift from viewing millennials as high-risk to low-risk relatively quickly,” said Michele Raneri, Vice President of Analytics and Business Development at Experian. “Knowing where you stand from a credit perspective is critical to improving or maintaining your financial well-being.”

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Phil Hall

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Aug 23, 2018

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