Only four out of 10 first-time homebuyers in the U.S. are married, according to a new analysis by Zillow. Compare that to when a majority, or 52 percent, of first-time buyers were married back in the late 1980s.
"First-time homebuyers today are typically older, spend more time in rental housing, are less likely to be married and are buying more expensive homes than they were in previous decades," Economic Analyst Cody Fuller stated in the report, which found the median age of first-time buyers is 32.5 years old — up from 30.4 in the late '80s.
A first-time homebuyer is renting for 6 years before buying, compared to 4.4 years in the past.
Zillow found that the buyers spend those extra years saving for a down payment that will cover a relatively hefty mortgage. But homeownership still costs considerably more than it used to, although it’s now more affordable than renting on a monthly basis. This factor is further complicated by stagnant wages.
So how pricy are first homes nowadays? The median value of first homes in the U.S. is $140,328 — about $32,000 higher than in the late '80s in inflation-adjusted terms, according to the report.
For younger buyers, 70 percent of homes were found to be affordable. Akron, OH, Buffalo, NY and St. Louis, MO were among the cities with the greatest percentage of homes affordable for millennials.
Perhaps it stands to reason that singles form a majority of first-time homebuyers, considering that a Pew Research Center report from last year states that a record share of Americans have never married. One in five adults age 25 and older have never tied the knot, Pew found, compared to one in 10 in the 1960s.
