Buying a first home, later than ever
The typical first-time home buyer in the US is now 40 years old, a record. First-time buyers made up just 21% of purchases, also a record.
For much of the twentieth century, buying a home was something many Americans did in their late twenties, often around the time they married or had a first child. That is no longer the typical story.
The numbers
The National Association of Realtors surveys recent home buyers every year. Its 2025 report, covering purchases from July 2024 to June 2025, found:
- the median age of first-time buyers was 40, the highest the survey has recorded;
- first-time buyers made up 21% of all purchases, the lowest share on record;
- repeat buyers had a median age of 62;
- the typical first-time buyer put down 10% of the price.
In other words, the typical person buying their first home is now well into their working life, and most homes are being bought by people who already own one.
Why buying has moved later
Several things have pushed in the same direction:
- Prices rose faster than pay. In much of the country, home prices climbed far faster than incomes over the past decade, so saving for a deposit takes longer.
- Borrowing became more expensive. Higher mortgage rates raise the monthly cost of the same house, and lenders lend against what a buyer can afford each month.
- Rents ate the deposit. High rents make it harder to save while renting, the very thing a first-time buyer has to do.
- Life events moved later too. People are marrying and having children later than they used to, and those are the events that have traditionally prompted a first purchase.
What owning does to a life
Owning a home is the main way most middle-income families build wealth. Each mortgage payment pays down a debt rather than paying a landlord, and over decades the house itself usually rises in value. A household that buys at 30 rather than 40 has ten more years of that build-up by retirement.
But a home is also a large, single, borrowed bet. It ties up savings, makes moving for work slower and more expensive, and brings costs renters do not pay: repairs, taxes, insurance. A buyer who stretches to the limit can be one bad year away from trouble. Owning is usually a good long-term deal; buying at the wrong time, the wrong place or the wrong price is not.
Outside the United States
The picture is similar in many rich countries, with first-time buyers getting older in the UK, Canada and Australia. Germany is the exception that proves the point: a large share of Germans rent for life, in a rental market with strong protections, and home ownership there is much lower than in the US without being seen as a failure. In countries such as Nigeria and India, homes are more often built over years, paid for in cash, a room at a time, rather than bought with a mortgage.
Questions people ask
Do you really need 20% down? No. The typical first-time buyer in NAR’s survey put down 10%, and many government-backed loans allow less. A smaller down payment usually means paying for mortgage insurance and a larger loan, so it costs more over time, but it can mean buying years earlier.
Is renting throwing money away? Not necessarily. Rent buys a place to live and the freedom to move. Owning tends to build wealth over long periods, but buying costs a great deal up front and selling costs more, so owners who move within a few years can end up worse off than if they had rented.
What do first-time buyers forget to budget for? Repairs, insurance, property taxes and the furniture and fixes a new home needs in its first year. A common rule of thumb is to expect maintenance to cost around 1% of the home’s value a year, more for older houses.
In One Life
In One Life, “Buy a home?” is one of the money Life Questions, and the answer comes with a real price: a deposit taken out of your savings, a monthly payment, a place to live that you chose. The prices are worked out for the country, the year and the life you are living. A house can become the safest thing you own or the thing that holds you in a town you wanted to leave. The game will show you which, decades later, when you can see what it did.