Although many people have benefited from the resurgence of the real estate market, first-time buyers have struggled.
According to the Campbell/Inside Mortgage Finance HousingPulse Tracking Survey, first-time home buyer purchases fell from 37.1 percent in June, to 34.7 percent in October. This was the lowest percentage seen in the history of the survey.
Meanwhile, current homeowners saw their share of purchases jump from 50 to 54.2 percent and investors purchases went from 11.3 to 12.2 percent.
"Financing of first-time home buyers with low down payments threatens to become a significant problem in the U.S. housing market," said Thomas Popik, research director for Campbell Surveys.
Much of first-time home buyers struggles have been because of tight lending restrictions. Without an ample amount of time to build a strong credit history or a savings account to cover a 20 percent down payment, first time buyers have been unable to qualify for a mortgage. Rising home prices have also contributed to the decline in first-time home purchases.
