Has homeownership become a luxury good?

"Homeownership is the top means by which the typical American accumulates and builds wealth, and that has never been truer than today. Homeowners are the winners in today's housing market, experiencing large gains in home equity across the board. These gains allow homeowners to make all-cash purchases on their next homes, remodel or sit on their wealth. While the stock market is for Wall Street, real estate is for Main Street America."

"Before the global financial crisis, the typical share of first-time homebuyers among all buyers was 40%. Today, that figure has dropped to 21%, according to the National Association of Realtors 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers. Four decades ago, the median age of a first-time homebuyer was 28, but today it's 40, according to the same report. In addition, the 2024 homeownership rate for those under 35 continued a two-year decline and fell to 37.1%."

Homeownership remains the primary vehicle for wealth accumulation for typical Americans, producing substantial equity gains for current homeowners. Large home equity increases enable homeowners to make all-cash purchases, remodel, or hold wealth. First-time buyer share has fallen from 40% pre-2008 to 21% today, and the median age of first-time buyers rose from 28 to 40 over four decades. Homeownership rates for under-35s declined to 37.1% in 2024, with millennials lagging Gen Xers and baby boomers at comparable ages. New buyers tend to have higher incomes, use financial assets for down payments, and receive fewer generational transfers. Limited housing inventory and affordability pressures, alongside high rents and consumer debts, contribute to fewer households gaining housing wealth, producing lifetime housing-wealth losses estimated around $150,000 for affected cohorts.

Read at www.housingwire.com