theMReport.com Your trusted source for mortgage banking news
Analysis from The Washington Post, using data from the Federal Reserve, found that in 2019, millennials with an average age of 31 owned just 4% of real estate value across the nation.
This is a stark contrast to the Baby Boomers, in 1990 with a median age of 35, owned nearly one-third of American real estate by value.
The Post adds that many millennials are entering their prime home-buying years and are likely to make up some of the gaps by the time they are 35—but does not expect the generation to reach 30% of the housing market.
Finances continue to be a struggle for the millennial generation. The Post states that for households headed by someone under the age of 35, median debt grew from $21,000 in 1989 to $39,000 in 2016. During that same period, the share of under-35 households with student loan debt more than doubled from 17% to 45%, and their median debt more than tripled—$5,600 to $18,000.
Clever reported in January that 84% of millennials in 2019 considered homeownership a major part of the American Dream. However, many still struggle to accomplish that dream.
“As close to 5 million millennials turn 30 this year and enter their prime home-buying stage, demand for housing is ramping up. Riding a wave of favorable financing, younger buyers have embraced homeownership, drying housing inventory to two-year low,” said realtor.com’s Senior Economist Geroge Ratiu. “With the generation’s rallying crying that there are not enough affordable homes, it is clear that there is ample room in the market for a significant increase in new construction, especially in the entry- and mid-level price segments.”
Clever states that millennials made up 45% of homebuyers in 2018, however, a study by the Urban Institute says that 10% fewer millennials own homes than their Generation X and Baby Boomer counterparts at the same age.
Clever says that more than 25% of millennials planning to buy a home in 2020 have less than $1,000 savings. Also, 25% of millennials have more than $10,000 in debt but still plan to spend more than $200,000 on a new home.
Seventy-percent of millennials plan to put down less than 20% on their new home.
Additionally, nearly a quarter of millennials said they hope to spend less than $100,000 on their home and nearly 20% will take on additional sources of income to help pay for a down payment.
