Average age of NYC homeowner jumps to stunning new high as American dream more out of reach for young people

The median age of New York City-area homeowners has jumped to a stunning new high as the housing affordability crisis keeps young buyers locked out of the market, according to a new report.As of 2024, the median age of a homeowner in the area covering NYC, Newark and Jersey City was 58.8 years old — just a few years shy of Social Security eligibility, the National Association of Realtors, or NAR, said earlier this month.The figure also marked a 4.4-year increase from the median age of homeowners in the Big Apple and its neighbors in 2010.The homeownership rate barely budged over the same period – slipping from 52.7% in 2010 to 51.3% in 2024, according to the data.“People keep talking about, ‘The housing market is frozen,’” Vlora Sejdi, former president of the Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors, told The Post.“It’s not frozen.

It’s aging.”While the homeownership rate hasn’t shifted much on paper, the profile of the typical homeowner has drastically changed.That’s because baby boomers are holding onto their property for longer while younger households are delaying ownership until later in life.Homeownership rates for those aged 25 to 34, 34 to 55, 45 to 54 and 55 to 64 have all seen declines, while the only group that has held strong is households 65 and older, NAR found.Nationwide, the median first-time homebuyer is officially 40 years old, according to NAR data released last year – up from 38 years old in 2024 and 33 in 2020.“Affordability is definitely a huge hurdle,” Sejdi told The Post, nodding to high interest rates, stubborn inflation and a lack of starter homes in New York City and beyond.

“Saving up for a down payment while paying high rent really isn’t easy.“You add that to the other costs of living that have increased exponentially and the fact that wages really haven’t, it makes it a much higher barrier than it was for their parents or their parents before them to be able to afford that first home,” she added.T...