02/13/2022
The housing shortage began before COVID, and isn't improving according to Freddie Mac and CNBC:
With more seniors than ever aging in place and choosing not to sell the family home, it's estimated that millions of fewer properties are now available in a market already experiencing a critical shortage.
That stay-put trend is crashing into the rising demand for housing from the huge millennial generation: fewer homes for sale will continue to put upward pressure on already overheated home prices.
While some homeowners are choosing to age in place, others simply can't afford the high costs of moving. Today's housing market is incredibly pricey, and some can't afford to move into another home, even a smaller one. For others, the math just doesn't make moving that attractive.
The homeownership rate among millennials is about 8 percentage points lower than previous generations at their age, according to the Urban Institute. Much of that has to do with delayed marriage, high levels of student loan debt, and a shift toward more expensive, urban living. Still, as more millennials age into marriage and parenthood, their desires to become homeowners increases, and the lack of supply of affordable homes for sale sidelines them... with their aging parents debating upsizing to make living more comfortable.
While the nation's homebuilders are focusing on so-called 55+ communities, some of these are expensive and not near urban locations. For some, downsizing into these communities works well, but for an increasing number, staying in their homes longer now seems sweeter.