Millennial first-time homeowners are showing more willingness than previous generations to complete do-it-yourself projects around the house or wait until they can afford to make the improvements they desire, a new survey by Better Homes & Gardens magazine shows. Fifty percent of those surveyed say that at move-in, their current home’s conditions require some degree of repair or remodeling.

They’re showing some compromise in their first home. Only 50 percent of first-time millennial homeowners say they are willing to spend top dollar to get exactly the features and quality they want in a home, the survey showed.

“These first-time millennial homeowners are focused on building equity, not debt,” says Jill Waage, editorial director of Digital Content and Products at Better Homes & Gardens. “They are strong believers in being able to afford their dreams as they achieve them and not over-stretch themselves.”

Eighty-five percent of first-time millennial homeowners say they view homeownership as a sound investment.

Their housing wish-list is for a mid-sized home (about 2,000 square feet) with a renovated kitchen and bathroom as well as a deck or patio space.

The DIY projects that landed the highest on their to-do lists are installing light fixtures and tile and painting walls, the survey showed.

“Millennials and millennial ‘firsts’ [first-time homeowners] are paving their own paths in homeownership based on their own budgets, timeline and needs,” Waage says. “These ‘firsts’ are replacing big-budget homes and expensive renovations with patience, frugalness and practicality.”

Source: “Millennials Patient, Thrifty When It Comes to Homeownership,” RISMedia (Jan. 11, 2017)