Gen Z is leading the race to homeownership.
By 2023, the homeownership rate for adults of Gen Z (ages 19 to 26) will surpass the homeownership rate of millennials and Gen Xers at age 24, according to real estate firm Redfin.
But it’s a close race: About 27.8% of 24-year-old Gen Zers own their home, compared with 24.5% of millennials at the same age. Gen X has a lower homeownership rate, at 23.5%, according to a Redfin report.
“I’m really happy to be able to buy a house,” said Dominic Belliccia, a 24-year-old homeowner who bought a house in Ventnor City, New Jersey, in October 2020. At the time, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 2.83%, according to Freddie Mac.
“I wasn’t sure if I had made the right decision. [buying a home]”I didn’t know if it was going to tip me over,” Velicchia said.
Gen Z makes up just 3% of homebuyers, according to a report from the National Association of Realtors. They are the generation that makes home purchases at the lowest incomes and are least likely to be married or have children under the age of 18.
Despite a tough market for buyers in 2023, nearly three-quarters of Gen Zers said they plan to buy a home within the next six years, according to mortgage lender Rocket Mortgage.
“The housing market is incredibly tough right now,” said Jessica Lautz, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors. “Housing inventory is very limited, and has been for a long time. Home prices are rising, and at the same time interest rates are higher than they’ve been in years, making the real estate market really unaffordable.”
So how is Gen Z able to buy homes faster than their elders, and what impact will that have on the housing market and the U.S. economy?
Watch the video above to learn how Gen Z is winning the homeownership race and how they compare to past generations at the same age.
