Home price-to-income ratio for under-40 households reaches 3.5 in 2024

The ratio of median home price to median household income for adults under 40 rose from 2.4 in 1975 to 3.5 in 2024, according to a Pew Research Center report. Between 2019 and 2024, median home prices increased 30 percent to $350,000 while median incomes rose 9 percent to $100,900.

A senior researcher at Pew stated that it has become considerably more difficult for young families to afford a home. The same report found that nine in 10 adults under 40 say buying a first home is harder today than it was for their parents' generation.

First-time buyer share falls to record low First-time buyers represented 21 percent of all home purchases in 2025, according to the National Association of Realtors. The typical age of a first-time buyer reached 40, an all-time high. The share of adults ages 25-34 who owned homes fell from 40 percent in 2005 to 29 percent in 2024, while the share living with parents rose from 12 percent to 20 percent over the same period.

Monthly ownership costs increase by more than $1,000 A buyer purchasing the 2019 median home with a 3.5 percent down payment and 3.9 percent mortgage faced monthly costs of $1,689. The same buyer purchasing the 2024 median home with a 6.7 percent mortgage faced monthly costs of $2,776.

Home prices rose 2 percent in the year ending in May, according to Redfin data. Real home values have declined gradually after adjusting for inflation, though insurance and property tax costs continue to rise.