60% of Prospective Buyers Say Upcoming Presidential Election Is Influencing Their Homebuying Plans, New Survey Finds

August 1, 2024

COLUMBIA, Mo., Aug. 1, 2024 - With the 2024 presidential election less than four months away, a majority of prospective homebuyers say the election is influencing their purchasing timeline, according to the Veteran Homebuying Report, a national survey of prospective homebuyers, released today by Veteran United Home Loans, the nation's largest VA lender. In addition, the survey found that nearly four in 10 of respondents believe it's better to wait until after the election to buy a home.

The quarterly online survey of more than 900 prospective homebuyers, including Veterans, service members, and civilians, found that 60% who plan to buy a home in the next three years say the 2024 election is a factor in their purchasing timeline, while 38% plan to wait until after the race is final.

"The upcoming election is clearly weighing on the minds of prospective homebuyers," said Chris Birk, Vice President of Mortgage Insight at Veterans United Home Loans. "Americans are considering the potential impacts of political changes on the economy and housing market, leading many to adjust their buying timelines accordingly."

Although the survey indicates that Veterans and civilians are in lockstep when it comes to the key issues surrounding the election, more civilians think it's better to wait until after the election to buy a home (43%), while 24% of Veterans surveyed plan to buy before Election Day.

Prospective homebuyers rank inflation and the prices of everyday goods; housing affordability; taxes/government spending and national debt; the job market, the overall health of the economy and national security as the top most important election issues. Both Veterans and civilians ranked inflation and housing affordability as their top two election issues, with Veterans ranking taxes slightly higher than civilians.

Top 5 Election Issues

Other key findings:

• Mortgage rates and home prices prompts buyers to push back timelines – Higher mortgage rates and home prices remain the primary barriers to homebuying. Half of those surveyed cited higher rates and home prices as a reason they plan to push back their homebuying plans. Veterans who plan to buy in the next six months fell to 40% in the most recent quarter, down from 42% in the first quarter. In comparison, 25% of civilians indicated they plan to buy in the next six months, up slightly from 24% in the fourth quarter of 2023, the last time civilians were surveyed.
• Boost in economic optimism - Nearly half (46%) of the Veterans surveyed believe the economy will improve over the next year, compared to 42% of civilians. Optimism among Veterans increased four points from the first quarter and was the highest optimism in the six-quarter history of the survey. Civilians' optimism has increased by nearly 14 points since year-end.
• Prospective homebuyers are feeling better about their finances – Survey respondents overall are feeling more positive when it comes to their finances. When asked if they were feeling better or worse about their finances, 49% of respondents indicated they were feeling better than a year ago. Sixty-two percent of Veterans were more positive, compared to 59% of civilians. This compares to 58% and 53%, respectively, in the second quarter of 2023.

Methodology

On behalf of Veterans United, data and research firm Sparketing conducted an online survey of 930 Veterans, service members and civilians from June 3-18, 2024. Veteran and service member results compare March 2024. Civilian results are a comparison to December 2023.

To view the full report, including charts and a detailed methodology, please visit: https://www.veteransunited.com/education/veteran-homebuyer-report/

About Veterans United Home Loans

Based in Columbia, Missouri, the full-service national lender financed more than $17 billion in loans in Fiscal Year 2023 and is the country's largest VA lender, according to the Department of Veterans Affairs Lender Statistics. The company's mission is to help Veterans and service members take advantage of the home loan benefits earned by their service.

VeteransUnited.com | 1-800-884-5560 | 550 Veterans United Drive, Columbia, MO 65201 | Veterans United Home Loans NMLS # 1907 (www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org). A VA approved lender; Not endorsed or sponsored by the Dept. of Veterans Affairs or any government agency. Licensed in all 50 states. For State Licensing information, please visit https://www.veteransunited.com/licenses/. Equal Opportunity Lender.