09.13.2007 — The typical owner of a newly built home is changing. It’s no longer the baby boomers dominating the new-home market. Instead, it’s the up-and-coming Generation X population that is now beginning to purchase second and even third homes.

So-called Gen-Xers, according to authors Bill Strauss and Neil Howe in their book, Generations: The History of America’s Future, 1584 to 2069, are those born between 1961 and 1981. This population is now making up the majority of the market for new construction.

In 2003, Gen-Xers purchased 55 percent of all newly built homes.

Raised on Atari and Nintendo

As these late-20-somethings to mid-40-somethings continue to gain in stature and affluence, the homes they buy and build follow suit. In contrast to their baby boomer predecessors, this generation of homeowners has an undeniable affinity for and comfort level with technology.

As a generation that grew up with computers in their classrooms, cell phones in their pockets and the World Wide Web at their fingertips, this group embraces technology as a means of improving their 21st Century lives.

The concept of a technologically acclimated generation is backed by the findings of a 2006 Frost & Sullivan study on North American Home Automation Markets. The study specifically notes that “preference of young buyers normally tends toward greater spaces and more sophisticated amenities than those of their forebears. In terms of high-tech amenities, more youngsters are likely to install home theaters, automation lighting and other systems.”

That’s not to say baby boomers aren’t adopting home automation technologies as well. They are. But Gen-Xers, who view advanced technology as a natural fit with their everyday lives are incorporating it into their homes at a much faster rate.

As young adults or even teenagers, many Gen-Xers dabbled in automation “gadgets” that they might have purchased through local consumer electronics retailers.

Today, as they become more established in their jobs, and as income levels increase, they’re looking to step up the level of automation technology with more sophisticated systems.

Gen-Xers realize the true value that today’s home automation technology can bring to their everyday lives. Their technology “upgrade” often includes a professional-level home automation system that integrates lighting control, multi-room audio, HVAC, security and other elements of home life.

Recognize the Opportunities

Working with this generation of homeowners, savvy integrators seeking to expand their business will recognize the opportunities accompanying the Gen-X mindset.

Installers must understand that this type of homeowner is comfortable with cutting-edge technology. As they propose upgrades to a standard electrical installation, they should anticipate that, more than any generation before them, Gen-Xers will see the value in what the proposed home technology could bring to their homes and to their lives.

Integrators would benefit, for example, from pointing out that better lighting—and better control over that lighting—is available with today’s advanced lighting control systems.

Those integrators who are as adept at talking about the value home automation brings to the homeowner’s life as they are at talking about the system itself will find a receptive audience when working with their Gen X customers.

Informing today’s new-home buyers about accessing audio in rooms throughout the home, explaining that it is easier with an integrated multiroom audio system, is more likely than ever before to have positive sales results.

Moreover, electrical distributors who provide home automation controls, and the training and expertise needed for installing that equipment, will be more valued.

Distributors who help contractors understand the mindset of today’s new-construction homeowner will see their business flourish in areas that previously went untapped.