Just how long does it take to buy a home in the Bay Area?

The old real estate adage “location, location, location” could be replaced in California by “compromise, compromise, compromise.”

Bay Area home buyers are saving longer, paying more, getting less and commuting farther than they wanted because of the region’s crippling housing shortage, according to a new survey by the California Association of Realtors.

The survey highlights the extreme efforts Bay Area residents make to buy into a market where the median home sells for four times the national average.

The typical Bay Area buyer spends 10 weeks searching for a home, about 25 percent longer than home buyers in other parts of the state.

A home buyer trying to afford a 20 percent down payment on a $1 million property — just under the median price for a home in Santa Clara, San Mateo and San Francisco counties — will spend at least 5 years scrimping and saving, and many take more than a decade to scrape up the cash, according to the survey.

“It takes a lot of effort to save that money,” said Oscar Wei, senior economist at the Realtors’ association. With interest rates rising in December for the fourth time this year and Bay Area home prices expected to climb higher next year, he said, “it’s going to be even harder.”

Buyers seeking homes selling for seven figures on average made five offers before landing a deal, according to the survey. “The hyper-competitive, supply-constrained Bay Area had the highest incidence of multiple offers,” said the statewide CAR survey.

The survey paints a vivid picture of the difficulties faced by prospective homeowners in California. Nearly half spent more than they wanted, and one-third bought a smaller property.

Millennial buyers were hit hardest, with about 4 in 10 compromising on price, location, schools and commute. Gen Xers compromised less on schools and home size. Baby Boomers, typically downsizing and cashing in years of home equity, found the most satisfaction in their home purchases.

The combination of rising interest rates and escalating home prices has been a double-whammy for many first time home buyers. For example, a buyer in Santa Clara County looking at a house with the area’s $1.3 million median price would need to save $260,000 for a 20 percent down payment. They would then also need a household income of nearly $300,000 to qualify for a loan and make a $5,600 monthly mortgage payment, according to Wei.

Local agents say the market has forced millennials into tough choices, including where and when to buy. Buying a townhome or a condo, a traditional purchase for first-time buyers, remains a popular option, they said.

Tony Ngai, an agent with Maxreal in Cupertino, said he sees young couples coming in more prepared, doing much research online before taking a house tour. But high prices force many to settle for a starter house rather than a long-term home, he said.

One young couple, in their early 30s with middle class jobs, qualified for a $650,000 loan to buy a townhouse, Ngai said. But they felt the financial pressure of the mortgage was too great.

Instead, they settled on a mobile home in South San Jose, costing one-third of their budget and allowing them to build equity for a few years before stepping up to a bigger home, he said. “They are young and ambitious,” Ngai said, “but at the same time, they compromised.”

Will Doerlich, an agent with Realty One in San Ramon, often advises younger buyers to not stretch their budgets too far. “I try to manage those expectations,” he said.

Many clients are coming in with atypical living arrangements, Doerlich said. One family purchase featured three brothers in their 20s buying a home with their mother; another young couple included a parent living with them in their home-buying plans, he said.

Alan Wang, an agent based in Santa Clara, said Bay Area newcomers have the hardest time finding a home to meet their expectations. A tech couple moving from the Midwest to Silicon Valley tends to take longer to find a home, he said.

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10-point strategy to tackle Bay Area’s housing crisis And he and his team have to manage their clients through the shock of Bay Area prices. “That is a tough conversation,” Wang said.

CAR conducted an online survey in May, June and July of California home buyers who had bought a house within the last 18 months. About 1,400 new buyers participated in the poll.

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