Home Ownership Among Millennials Declining

Lots of reasons for this phenomena including higher mortgage underwriting standards, increases in home prices relative to wages, and notably, increases in student loan debt.

The increase in student loan debt reportedly represents 35% of this decline in home ownership. According to the NYT article, "if student debt levels had stayed where they were in 2001, more than 360,000 people in that age group would have owned a home in 2015".

Is this a phenomena that will impact future demand for housing? Will Millennials simply delay purchasing a home or will many of them become permanent renters with negative consequences for future home ownership trends?

At some point the Millennial generation will inherit the remaining wealth of their Boomer parents (and their homes), which should generate some business for the r.e. profession. (unless they all keep and live in their inherited homes). The Millennials are a larger group, but the Boomers are wealthier.

Yes, Aaron. Some will benefit from their inheritances and there is a trend now for parents to transfer wealth to their kids well before they die. I agree that Boomers are generally wealthier. And Boomers had on average more than one kid so there is less to go around.

But I wonder how many Millennials don't have the advantage of wealthy parents and whether they will follow their parents' home ownership habits. The Millennial generation is more mobile and may not want to be tied down to an expensive home in particular. Maybe when they retire in 30-odd years we may see an echo boom.