Millennials and members of Generation Z now make up the majority of military veteran and active-duty homebuyers, but not all cities offer good situations for them.
To that end, Veterans United Home Loans conducted a study to find which housing markets are best for current and former military members in these two generations. It concluded that the most favorable markets are on the East Coast and in the Midwest.
The cities in the top 10 also have close proximity to a military base and are in states that don’t tax military retirement pay.
The city that topped the list is Tampa. Its housing market, along with others in Florida, boomed after the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020. While the median home price of $424,950 there is higher than all but one of the cities in the top 10, the unemployment rate is only 3.6% and the quality of life score ranks No. 2.
San Antonio; Cleveland; Rochester, New York; and Buffalo, New York rounded out the top five. St. Louis; Detroit; Birmingham, Alabama; Providence, Rhode Island; and Houston also made the top 10.
”As home prices continue to rise and with interest rates double what they were just two years ago, first-time buyers are in a challenging position,” Chris Birk, vice president of mortgage insight at Veterans United, said in a statement.
“Thanks to the Veterans Administration loan, Millennial and Gen Z veterans and service members have the benefit of reduced upfront costs and no private mortgage insurance, making homebuying more affordable. The top 10 markets provide what Millennials and Gen Z are looking for in terms of quality of life, some of the most affordable housing prices in the country, and compelling job opportunities for life after the military.”
Inputs for the Veterans United study included the company’s quarterly Veteran Homebuying Report, which polls veterans on the most important factors for buyers.
The study also factors in a metropolitan area’s median home price, its population of millenial and Gen Z veterans, and the unemployment rate. Because millennials and Gen Zers express strong preferences for living in big cities, the analysis was also limited to metro areas with a population of at least 1 million.