Empty-nest Boomers now own more large homes than Millennial families. And the forces driving that trend could persist for decades.
According to a new analysis of Census data by Redfin, Baby Boomers own the largest share of America’s biggest homes. Boomers living in one- or two-person households own 28% of homes with three or more bedrooms. By comparison, Millennials with children own just 16% of such large homes. That’s a difference of 12 percentage points.
Across all household types, Boomers own 35.3% of large homes, followed by Gen X at 31.2%, and Millennials at 23.8%.
So why do Boomers still own so many big houses?
We’ve often written about Boomers’ tendency to “age in place.” (See “The Death of Senior Housing” and “Why Americans Are Spending More On Home Improvement.”) Unlike the GI Generation, which was more willing to embrace retirement communities, Boomers have shown a strong preference for staying put. Many want to remain near their children and grandchildren. Others continue to support multigenerational households or remain employed well past traditional retirement age. As a result, many Boomers continue to occupy the large homes in which they raised their families.
There is also a financial component. Many Boomers have either paid off their mortgages entirely or locked in low interest rates back in the 2010s. As a result, they have little economic incentive to sell. At the same time, many Millennials struggle to afford large homes when they do come onto the market.
Of course, this imbalance will not last forever. Many Millennials will eventually inherit these homes as their Boomer parents pass away. And some are already living in these homes. But the youngest large “baby boom” cohort, born in 1964, will not enter their high-mortality years until the late 2040s. In fact—and this comes from the SSA’s Longevity Visualizer—half of all couples born in 1964 won’t both be deceased until the year 2056. By that time (gulp!) the oldest Millennials will be in their early 70s.
So no, the imbalance won’t last forever. But unless something else changes, the demographic forces keeping large homes off the market today may remain in place for decades. (See “Who Will Buy All the Boomer Homes?”)