“Generation Z” is typically defined as including anyone who was born between 1997 and 2012. As of 2024, the oldest member of Gen Z that you know would likely be about 27 years old.
When you think about everything that has happened since the turn of the century, it’s easy to take someone this “young” for granted. They were small children for many of the most notable events that have been seared into our collective consciousness, with the financial crisis and ensuing economic downturn being a top example of that.
But as the cold march of time continues, Gen Zers are getting older. They’re starting to graduate from school and look for jobs. They want to carve out a path for themselves that is unique to those that came before them. They’ve got a number of interests that we likely would have overlooked at the same age – with wholesale real estate being chief among them.
It’s true – wholesale real estate is gaining popularity with Gen Z members for a wide range of different reasons, all of which are worth a closer look.
Accessibility
Maybe the biggest reason why real estate wholesaling is gaining popularity with Generation Z has to do with its natural accessibility.
Think about it from the perspective of anyone under the age of 30. Real estate investing is something that only “seasoned professionals” do. It takes a lot of hard work to find properties to invest in. You need a lot of capital to buy a house, fix it up, and put it back on the market. You need to execute a strategy in just the right way to find a new buyer. This takes skill and insight that younger people might not feel like they possess, thus making the entire affair unattainable in their minds.
Wholesale real estate, however, is something else entirely. It can be a way for Generation Z to enter the market with far less capital compared to buying an entire property for themselves. By acting as the “middle man” in a transaction, there isn’t actually anything to “buy” at all. You’re simply getting a seller to agree to one price while getting a buyer to agree to another one. The difference between those two prices is what you get to keep as a profit.
This is all especially attractive considering the rising costs of traditional homeownership. Many in Gen Z in particular may feel like homeownership isn’t an attainable dream anymore in and of itself. Things have gotten to the point where they probably don’t even consider it a part of their “perfect vision of the future.” That doesn’t mean they’re not interested in all that wholesale real estate has to offer, however.
Tech-Savviness
As stated, finding and researching real estate deals can be time-consuming through traditional methods. Members of Gen Z may feel like they don’t have the ability to put out this kind of effort. Thankfully, they’re also the most tech-savvy generation that has ever lived and that insight into the fast-paced digital world can be applied to wholesale real estate as easily as it can to anything else.
There are many online tools and platforms that Gen Z is already comfortable using, with social media being a top example of that. These avenues are a great way for them to do research into properties they might want to invest in as a real estate wholesaler. The best part of all is that they can complete this part of the process without actually interacting with anyone else.
The Entrepreneurial Spirit
Another clear reason why real estate wholesaling is gaining popularity among Generation Z has to do with the entrepreneurial spirit that seems practically built into the majority of them from the time of birth.
Think about it like this. Generation Z members have never lived in a time when the job market wasn’t at least somewhat difficult. They grew up in an era that forced them to create their own jobs due to a lack of existing ones – which is part of where the “gig” economy comes from.
Wholesaling involves a lot of deal finding and negotiation, which will likely appeal to Gen Z’s interest in being their own boss. At the very least, it gives them a massive amount of control over the investment process, which is also something they have proven to put a premium on time and again.
The Unending Quest for Flexibility
Finally, wholesale real estate has been steadily gaining popularity with Generation Z thanks to the almost unparalleled level of flexibility it brings with it.
Wholesale real estate doesn’t require being tied down to a specific property for a prolonged period of time. You’re not going to be spending years with a home. In fact, you’re incentivized to move it as quickly as possible. You’re not going to be dealing with ongoing maintenance or anything like that. The faster you can bring that perfect buyer and seller together, the faster you can make money and move on to the next deal.
There’s a fast-paced and flexible nature that is incredibly appealing about it all, and it’s a big part of why wholesale real estate has attracted the attention of so many in a short amount of time.
In the end, it doesn’t matter what is going on in the world or which generation you’re talking about – the real estate industry is one of the few true constants in our lives. People will always need a place to live and that means there will always be buyers and sellers out there looking to make a profit.
It’s just that Gen Z members in particular tend to be fans of the “non-traditional” approach to just about everything. Why bother going through the time-consuming and otherwise effortful process of a traditional real estate transaction when you can leverage wholesale real estate to your advantage?
It’s a lesson that many Gen Z members have learned over the last few years, as is indicated by the increasing popularity of the sector. It’s also one trend that shows absolutely no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
