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With Baby Boomers outbidding Millennials and Generation X in many home sales, economists at the National Association of Realtors say real estate agents should start thinking differently about what their clients need from them.

Today’s first-time buyers expect to stay in their homes significantly longer, NAR deputy chief economist Jessica Lautz said during the association’s annual market forecast webinar Wednesday, meaning Realtors may not be able to rely on repeat business from the same family.

“This may change. They may have a baby. They may get married. They may change jobs. But be aware that this could be a different relationship with that client. Maybe they need a remodeler” instead of an agent to buy a new house, Lautz said, opening opportunities for agents to act as sources of knowledge and referrals for other housing-related professions.

First-time buyers’ median expected tenure in their new house was seven years in 2007, according to data Lautz presented. Last year, the figure jumped up 18 years after more than a decade at 10 years, as the ultra-low mortgage rates when many bought last year, and today’s high home prices, are deterring many from trying to move up. First-time buyer attitudes only partially track with repeat buyer sentiment. The median repeat buyer expected a 10-year tenure in 2007 before jumping up to 15 years in 2010 and holding steady there through the most recent NAR survey in 2022.

This change is also happening as the demographics of today’s typical homebuyer have also shifted dramatically, Lautz said.

The median homebuyer age hit 59 last year as Baby Boomers used their built-up equity and wealth to outbid mostly Millennial buyers or beat them with all-cash offers, which now make up a quarter of all home sales in America today, Lautz said. So far this year, only 28 percent of homebuyers are Millennials despite making up the largest share of the U.S. population by far, while Boomers’ share of the homebuying public has surged to 39 percent and Gen X’s share rose slightly to 24 percent.

Downsizing is “out,” Lautz said, as Boomer buyers have tended to buy homes around the same size as ones they were leaving behind – particularly those moving long distances for retirement or to be closer to their grandchildren. One-quarter of all moves last year were made over 470 miles, Lautz noted, a huge change from before the pandemic when most moves were generally within the same metro area.