Michael Stumpf is a consultant in community planning, economic development, and market analysis, based in New Berlin, Wisconsin. 1 Place Dynamics Tomorrow’s Home Buyer By Michael Stumpf, September 2008 merica has been in a housing slump for more than two years. While waiting for it to bottom out it may be worth our time to look ahead and speculate on changes we may to see coming. Our notion of the American Dream is quickly being eroded by rising energy costs and generational preferences. These changes will im- pact both builders and communities as we climb our way back to a healthy housing market. Perhaps there is no greater threat to housing price stability than the coming Boomer Sell-Off. Much has been made of the fact that the first baby boomers are entering retirement, but that has not included much discussion about housing. As boomers retire they will be selling their homes to move into their final home. Research shows that a majority of these newly retired boomers will not be attracted to age-restricted retirement communi- ties, or even be as inclined to move to the south, as did their parents. Instead, most boomers will prefer a detached home or condominium, often as large as the home they are leaving. A look at many new developments shows that developers are al- ready responding to this demand. But boomers are also the largest age cohort in the U.S. population, and at this point in the housing cycle, many of them own homes. As they sell they will be adding an enormous inventory of existing housing to the market. There are fewer buyers in Generations X and Y, which has led some people to expect a glut of homes for sale. Further compli- cating the issue, Generation X and Y buyers do not want the same house as did the previous genera- tions. Their preferences vary, but a majority favor smaller homes with better quality finishes instead of a large home. They also prefer active mixed-use neighborhoods instead of suburban tracts and A