Affordability Kept Young Buyers Out in 2025
High rents, tight starter-home supply and income gaps sidelined many millennial and Gen Z buyers in 2025, leaving would-be purchasers on the sidelines.
NEW YORK — Millennials and Generation Z would-be homebuyers vanished from the market last year, according to a report.
An analysis from Realtor.com found nearly 2 million young would-be buyers trapped in a state of what would have once been considered suspended adulthood.
"For many millennials and Gen Z households, it comes down to affordability and savings," said Nadia Evangelou, principal economist at NAR.
"High rents make it hard to save for a down payment, and starter homes are often priced well above what early-career incomes can support. On top of that, the entry-level market is very tight, and younger buyers are often competing with repeat buyers who already have equity."
The research also indicated construction fell nearly 50,000 units short of demand in 2025, despite nearly 1.4 million housing starts and the creation of 1.4 million new households.
"Over the past decade, many households, particularly younger ones, have delayed forming due to limited supply and worsening affordability," added Realtor.com's Hannah Jones. "Rather than establishing independent households, many young adults have remained with parents, lived with extended family, or shared housing with roommates."
Last year, the base income needed to purchase a median-priced starter home was roughly $86,000, which was higher than the typical income for people in their 20s and early 30s.
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