Selling Intentions of Homeowners With Children
Family-related moves have picked up since the onset of the pandemic. Zillow’s Quarterly Survey of Homeowner Intentions and Preferences (QSHIP) found that at the beginning of 2023, 42% of homeowners considering selling in the next three years cited growing family size as a reason for moving. This is consistent with the increase seen during the second year of the pandemic when most COVID-19 restrictions began to lift, with the proportion rising from 26% to 40% between March and December 2021. Although the percentage of homeowners reporting growing family size as a reason for moving dipped in June 2022, the data suggests a sustained trend into 2023 of households moving for growing families.
Are homeowners’ with children planning on selling their homes?
The percentage of homeowners living with children who planned to sell jumped from a consistent 13% in 2021 to 22% in June 2022. By the beginning of 2023, 29% of homeowners living with children intend to sell and move.
Households with two or more children are driving these trends. In March 2023, homeowners living with two or more children were more likely to have plans to sell in the next three years than households with only one child or no children.[1] 35% of homeowners living with two more children plan to sell their home compared to 11% of households with no children and 18% of households with one child.
How far are households with children planning to move?
The housing needs that come with a growing family (e.g., a larger home or neighborhoods with child-friendly amenities) can often be met by moving locally. Local moves tend to be less disruptive to a family’s routines and established ties in the area, including not only friends and family but also children’s caretakers and classmates, make staying close more desirable. Homeowners with children are more likely to be considering short-distance moves, defined as less than an hour away from their current home. 84% of homeowners living with children, compared to 48% of those living without children, are considering moving locally. This is unsurprising, given that longer-distance moves have historically been motivated by employment opportunities.
[1] Additional (regression-based) analyses show that these family structure differences persist even accounting for differences in the head of household’s age, education, and marriage status.
Methodology
These analyses use data from the ZG Population Science Quarterly Survey of Homeowner Intentions and Preferences using a repeated cross-sectional design. Homeowners 18 years of age and older who did not move within the last 12 months were eligible for participation. Data are weighted to ensure representativeness of this homeowner population. The Q1 2023 survey was fielded during the first two weeks of March 2023 and included 1,996 homeowner respondents.