Almost 50 Percent Of American Renters Think They Will Be 40 Before They Become Homeowners – How Does That Compare To Previous Decades?

A Newsweek survey revealed some troubling aspects of how young Americans view the housing market. It shows that nearly half of American renters (46%) don't believe they will be able to purchase a home before their 40th birthday. Roughly one in four survey respondents told Newsweek they don't think they will ever be able to purchase a home.

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The source of this pessimism is likely a combination of high prices, high interest rates and lack of availability. High interest rates have not only diminished renters' buying power but also led many to wonder whether the price of homeownership is still worth it. Almost 60% of respondents said interest rates have climbed so high that the total cost of buying a home may outweigh the benefits.

That shift in attitude is a radical departure from a 1994 Fannie Mae survey in which 86% of respondents believed they would be better off owning a home. Moreover, 74% of respondents felt that Americans should buy a house "as soon as they can afford it." However, it's also worth noting that the Fannie Mae survey showed homeownership has always been less prevalent among people under 40.

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It showed an ownership rate under 50% whenever the head of household was under 25. What's changed in the last 30 years is the extreme run-up in home prices. In 1994, the median home price in America was around $130,000 (according to the St. Louis Federal Reserve). HUD data shows the average interest rate on an FHA 30-year fixed mortgage in 1994 was 8.42%.

Today's interest rates are around 6%, but the average home price has surged to approximately $420,400. This goes a long way toward explaining the current pessimism among young renters. The Fannie Mae survey from 1994 found younger buyers were the least likely to own homes largely because they lacked the income to purchase and tended to be more mobile in terms of where they live.

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A recent article in Newsweek also shows that the average salary required to purchase a starter home today is roughly $76,000. The squeeze many young renters find themselves in is that homes in real estate markets where jobs pay $76,000 tend to be much higher than the $420,400 median home price. Another pressing issue is that obtaining those high-paying jobs typically requires higher education.

If anything is rising faster than the cost of housing, it's the cost of higher education. Many young workers who earn high salaries are also struggling with student loan debt. All these factors are coming together to make it very difficult for young renters to purchase homes. When these considerations are taken together, it becomes easy to understand why so many young renters believe they won't become homeowners until after their 40th birthday. 

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