More millennials own than rent, new study finds

Millennials have long been known as the “Generation of Renters.” Renting was popular and sometimes the only option for people of this age group. Millennials, those born between 1981 and 1996, face many obstacles, such as the housing crisis, student debt, and the COVID-19 pandemic, on their way to homeownership. However, in 2022, Millennial homeowners surpassed Millennial renters for the first time in history. 

Millennial homeownership rate climbed to 51.5 percent in 2022, according to a study by RentCafe. Millennials, the largest generation in the U.S. workforce, gave up their renter-majority title. This generation gained 10.8 million homeowners over the past decade, including 7.1 million in the last five years, bringing the total to 18.2 million in 2022. However, Millennials still own fewer homes than Gen X or Baby Boomers. 

Millennials approach homeownership differently than people from older generations. Although affordability may be the primary reason many Millennials rent, it is closely followed by flexibility. These two factors pushed Millennials to buy their first homes later in life. In 2022, the year this age group switched to owner-majority, the average Millennial was 34 years old. Gen Xers reached this milestone at 32 and Boomers at 33. 

The historic increase in median income and the opportunity to save money by moving back with parents at the start of the pandemic helped more Millennials become homeowners. This generation had a historically high median income of $108,000 per year in 2022, up 44 percent from a year before, according to the report. In addition, 59% of Millennial homebuyers also received financial support from the family. 

Gen Z, which includes people born from 1997 to 2013, is the only renter-majority generation. Gen Z has 5.6 million renter households against just 2 million homeowners. However, most Gen Zers are still too young to buy a home. Although Gen Z is the only generation with a renter majority, most renters are still Millennials. This age group has 17.2 million renters, the highest number among all generations. 

Richmond, Virginia, is the most popular place for Millennial homebuyers. The city saw the highest increase in Millennial homeownership among the country’s largest 50 metros. The number of Millennial homeowners tripled in Richmond in the last five years. Millennial homeownership soared 90 percent in New York, the city where most people rent. Meanwhile, Los Angeles recorded a 47 percent increase in Millennial homeowners and a 6.8 percent jump in Millennial renters. 

Resources:

“Millennials Make Historic Switch From Renter-Majority to Homeowner-Majority Generation,” by Alexandra Both (RentCafe, 2023)

“There Are Finally More Millennial Homeowners Than Renters,” by Pete Grieve (money.com, 2023)

“More millennials now own their own home than rent one, leaving Gen Z the only group where most still have a landlord,” by Sam Tabahriti (Business Insider, 2023)

“Millennial Homeowners Finally Outnumber Millennial Renters,” by Michael Kolomatsky (The New York Times, 2023)