Housing News

Millennials Buy Fewer Homes, While Baby Boomers Purchase More Properties

Stymied by high costs, fewer millennials purchased homes last year.

The number of successful millennial homebuyers dropped to 29% last year, down from 38% in the prior year, according to the National Association of Realtors 2025 Home Buyers and Sellers Generational Trends report. NAR defined millennials as those between the ages of 26 and 44.

In addition, less than a quarter of first-time homebuyers, 24%, became homeowners. That was down from 32% in the previous year.

Members of Generation Z, ages 18 to 25, made up about 3% of buyers.

Meanwhile, the number of baby boomers in the market jumped to 42%, up from 31% in the prior year. That made boomers, ages 60 to 78, the largest group of buyers.

Generation X made up about 24% of buyers and members of the Silent Generation represented 4% of buyers. (NAR explained the totals don’t add up to 100% due to rounding and omissions for space.)  

“In a plot twist, baby boomers have overtaken millennials—the largest U.S. population—to become the top generation of homebuyers,” said NAR Deputy Chief Economist Jessica Lautz in a statement.

That makes sense as high mortgage rates and rising home prices have made homeownership challenging for many younger buyers.

Meanwhile, boomers are more likely to be repeat buyers. That means they can roll the equity that they gained in their homes as property values rose and put it toward their next homes.

And that appears to be exactly what they’re doing.

“What’s striking is that half of older boomers and two out of five younger boomers are purchasing homes entirely with cash, bypassing financing altogether,” said Lautz in a statement.

In comparison, 96% of younger millennials, ages 26 to 34, and 95% of older millennials, ages 35 to 44, used a mortgage to finance their purchase.

Buyers put down a median down payment of 15% of the sale price. More than a quarter of younger millennials, 27%, used a gift from family or friends to help come up with a down payment.

The report was based on a survey filled out by nearly 5,400 recent homebuyers. These buyers purchased primary homes between July 2023 and June 2024.

What kinds of homes are selling?

Buyers overwhelmingly chose single-family homes, which made up three-quarters of the homes sold.

Another 7% of sales were townhouses. Roughly 12% were duplexes, triplexes, condos, and apartments, 3% were mobile and manufactured homes, and 2% were cabins and cottages. (These percentages do not add up to 100%.)

Buyers typically purchased a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home spanning 1,900 square feet. The average home was constructed in 1994.

Nearly half of homes, 45%, were located in the suburbs. Another 23% were in small towns, just 16% were in urban areas and cities, 14% were in rural areas, and 3% were in vacation communities.

And there were more buyers purchasing a multi-generational home, where they could live with their adult children, aging parents, or both. Multi-generational homes made up 17% of sales, up from 14% in the previous year.

Members of Generation X were the most likely to purchase these properties.

“Gen Xers are today’s sandwich generation,” said Lautz in a statement. “While Gen X are purchasing at the highest household incomes, they may still feel the squeeze as they aim to find a home that serves everyone.”

Who is selling homes?

Home sellers tended to be older, with baby boomers making up about 53% of all of those who put a home on the market.

Owners tended to stay in their properties for a median of 10 years before listing their homes. Younger homeowners stayed for about five years, while older boomers were in their residences for about 16 years.

Most sellers were able to get their asking price, while 27% received more than list price.