Building A Home Buyers’ Educational Program

Abstract

The complicated steps involved in the process of buying a home and the significance of home buying activity to the U.S. economy underscore the importance of educational programs that are offered in this area. An abundance of home buyer education curricula have been developed by lenders, real estate professionals, community development officials, Extension Specialists and Agents, and others who want to assist prospective home buyers in this decision-making process. This paper reports on a project in which Extension Specialists in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and Guam were surveyed to determine the extent of their participation in home buyer education programs. Survey questions covered past and current efforts in home buyer education, target audiences, collaborators with whom Specialists have worked and with whom they would like to work, ideas for programs that worked, as well as those that did not work, and a request for samples of program materials. Follow-up telephone surveys were conducted of County Extension Agents and collaborators who were identified by Specialists.

Data gathered through the surveys indicated that needs exist for comprehensive interdisciplinary curricular resources suitable for a wide range of home buyer audiences and that follow-up education beyond the purchase decision, especially for first-time buyers, is an important component of home buyer education programs.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jeanne M. Hogarth

Jeanne M. Hogarth is an Associate Professor, Department of Consumer Economics and Housing

Joseph Laquatra

Joseph Laquatra is an Associate Professor, Department of Design and Environmental Analysis, Cornell University. The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Jane Baker Segelken for coordination of the project described in this paper.