Cryptocurrency’s Growing Role in the Real Estate Market

“Crypto” is arguably the hottest buzzword in pop culture today. Whether it is up or it is down, it is constantly making headlines around the world. For some of us, it is difficult to understand the inner workings of cryptocurrency, how it works, how it is traded, and how it is being applied today or will be applied in the future. No matter your level of expertise on the subject, it is impossible to ignore its relevance to a multitude of industries - real estate included.

Around the country, headlines have been made about luxury properties being paid for in crypto. Just up the road in Miami Beach, Arte Surfside recently closed a $22.5 million penthouse in a first of its kind cryptocurrency transaction. This is slowly becoming more acceptable and more commonplace in luxury markets around the nation. 

But cryptocurrency is not just for the affluent. In the past several years, average Americans have been getting more and more into the crypto markets, and many are using profits from the space for real estate down payments. A recently reported survey done by Redfin confirms that the percentage of Americans that report using profits from sold cryptocurrency as a means to secure a down payment on a home is on the rise.

In the third quarter of 2019, just 4.6% of first-time homebuyers reported using money made from cryptocurrency investments as a down payment on a property. In 2020, the number rose to 8.8%. Last year, the percentage of Americans purchasing their first home who used crypto profits as down payments for real estate rose again to nearly 12%.

As cryptocurrency grows, not only in popularity, but in mainstream acceptance, it is expected that these trends - as well as more all crypto-funded transactions - will continue to increase in number. Millennials are a real driving force in the cryptocurrency market, and are now entering the real estate market in droves. In fact, more than 50% of all new mortgage applications are for millennials. It is no doubt, then, that we will be seeing more and more of an impact by cryptocurrency on the real estate industry in the coming months and years.

If you are looking to purchase real estate in the Florida Keys, let our local area experts help you find the right property - whether you are paying in cash, financing, or crypto!