The Aging First-Time Homebuyer

• November 5th

by UrbanTurf Staff

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If you picture a 30-something couple buying their first home, it is time to update that mental image. 

The National Association of REALTORS®’ 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers finds that first-time buyers made up a record-low 21% of all buyers last year, and their median age climbed to an all-time high of 40. 

That shift isn’t a quirk of one number — it shows up across the report. The median age for all buyers hit 59, and repeat buyers’ median age sits at 62, with nearly a third of repeat purchasers paying all cash. First-timers are also arriving with higher down payments (a median of 10%) and an increasing reliance on savings or financial assets for those payments, rather than the smaller gifts or family loans that used to be more common. Taken together, the data paints a market where equity-rich, older buyers dominate while younger households struggle to break in.

How did we get here? NAR points to a supply-and-affordability squeeze: homeowners are staying put (median tenure before selling is now 11 years), housing stock that would traditionally serve as “starter” homes has thinned, and prices plus borrowing costs have pushed younger buyers back.

So what would nudge the needle back? The report’s prescriptions are familiar but blunt: more supply (especially smaller/affordable units), policies that reduce local zoning and permitting drag, incentives that encourage owners of existing homes to trade up (thereby freeing starter homes), and preservation or expansion of programs that lower barriers for lower-wealth buyers (FHA, VA, down-payment assistance).

In short, without targeted efforts to restore affordable entry points, the “starter-home” pipeline will keep funneling buyers into their 40s — and cities that rely on a steady inflow of younger households may see long-term shifts in demographics, commuting patterns, and neighborhood life. 

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/the_aging_first-time_homebuyer/24037.