Editorial|&utm_term=|Website-Editorial-NAT(Website)|"> Auction.com LLC. The firm's January Real Estate Nowcast projected that existing home sales for the month will fall between seasonally adjusted annual rates of 4.9 and 5.21 million annual sales, with a targeted number of 5.06 million. This suggests that January sales will be up from one year ago and essentially flat compared to December sales.

Regarding when he anticipates the factors dampening home sales might abate, Rick Sharga, EVP of Auction.com, told us, “There isn't likely to be a big increase in demand from homebuyers anytime soon. Most indications are that 2015 will be essentially flat when compared to 2014. Lower oil prices may eventually provide enough economic stimulus to encourage more home buying; but that's likely to be offset by significant slowing in Texas, which has had some of the strongest home sales numbers in the country over the past few years, and a handful of other oil and energy-dependent states.”

When asked this question, Green tells GlobeSt.com, “To me, the most important thing is marriage. Married couples buy, and people aren't getting married. First-time homebuyer levels are really putrid, and part of that is the financial climate. But also, people don't want to buy homes until they marry, and the marriage rate has plummeted, and we don't know when that will change.”

Green adds that he believes multifamily demand is stronger than homebuying demand among Millennials because “when you live in an apartment building, a lot of the day-to-day issues of homeownership go away. When you have a home you have to manage on a daily basis,” that requires an extra amount of responsibility. Of course, he points out, different market segments see a difference in the number of homebuyers vs. apartment dwellers.

There are policy changes currently afoot that should stimulate demand a little, Green says, but these are second to demographics. Moves such as lowering insurance premiums on FHA loans and the GSEs allowing 3% down for mortgages will help homebuying levels, but “compared to who we're living with, this is small potatoes.”