Millennials Want Luxury Lifestyle: Cost Of Living Analyzed

By Jane Reed | May 13, 2016 09:37 AM EDT

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Not everybody can afford a luxury condominium or apartment but according to reports, that's an enticing product for millennials.

Want a new apartment? Affordable doesn't seem to look like a priority these days. Affordable living spaces are now in the back burner and upscale apartments are on the rise around the United States.

Maybe there's a new apartment building in your block that's about to open. Chances are, you may not be able to afford to rent the place and live there, as told by Market Watch.

Gone are the days that the exclusive and high life are only for the rich. According to Rent Cafe, rental developments are starting to classify living spaces as high-end. This national apartment search website includes apartments outside the big cities as well. These high-end apartments can be found in Jacksonville, Fla.; Kansas City, Mo.; Midland-Odessa, Texas; Milwaukee; and Oklahoma City the only large apartment complexes built last year were luxury ones. In the Southwest and Mid-Atlantic regions, 88% of new developments were luxury.

Why is there a sudden luxury apartment rise? It's a choice for double-income millennial earners. They are attracted to the lifestyle provided by the development. If fitness centers, pet care and other amenities are within reach, chances are, they will go for it. These buildings are often situated in trendy, amenity-rich neighborhoods in or near the city's core but it's slowly expanding outwards.

Another reason that luxury apartments are appealing to millennials: It's "harder than ever" for would-be first-time home buyers to purchase a home today, whether due to tougher credit requirements, a lack of a down payment or, in some cases, student loan debt, said Stockton Williams, executive director of the Urban Land Institute's Terwilliger Center for Housing.

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