Ellie Mae’s Millennial Tracker

Millennials make up the largest portion of the US population, this generation consists of individuals born between the years of 1982 and 2004. Some of the oldest Millennials were just coming-of-age in 2007 when the recession forced them to compete in a job arena with Baby Boomers and Gen Xer’s who had just been laid off from their executive positions. As the years have passed, the job market has gotten stronger, and more millennials are reaching a point where they are financially capable of juggling what is left of their student loans while investing in real estate. Given that Millennials are the latest, greatest, and largest generation, lenders are beginning to cater their services and advertising to fit the needs of their target demographic.

Ellie Mae is a software company; they are responsible for processing nearly a quarter of US mortgage applications.

Preceding the launch of Fannie Mae’s Trending Credit Data and Desktop Underwriter update, was Ellie Mae’s launch of their Millennial Tracker in May of 2016. This platform was created as a means for better serving Millennials who are seeking to buy a home in the near future. Joe Tyrrell, a EVP for Ellie Mae, said there are about 87 million “would-be” homebuyers in the millennial generation and out of that 91% intend to buy a home one day.

What is the Millennial Tracker?

The Millennial Tracker provides lenders with insights concerning Millennial home purchasing, intended to supplement their monthly Origination Insight Report, which focuses on loans closed in a specific month and compares them with similar closures from 3 to 6 months earlier. The Millennial Tracker is specific to this new demographic of homebuyers and gives lenders information into how they can fit into their potential customer’s needs.

This data will also give insight into the average loan amount for millennials and the average age of borrowers within that generation. For instance, since its launch in May, lenders have seen that the average age of first-time-buyers is 29 for females and 29.3 for males. Lenders can now cater their marketing strategy to target those within that age range.

Are you a first time homebuyer? Do you have good credit history & scores?

Before you jump on Trulia or Zillow and start searching for the home of your dreams, step back from your iPad and review where you stand financially. Lenders want to sell to you, but the only way you will be accepted at an affordable rate is if you can show a fairly strong financial background and strong credit history / management skills. Buying a home takes a lot of preparation, pull your FICO reports, and ask your lender where you need to be in order to take out a mortgage at an affordable rate. If you have any questions about your reports or notice inconsistencies / errors, our credit experts are here to help!