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When we think about San Jose, CA, we usually think of very expensive homes, tech jobs, and affordability challenges, not married-couple households. So, it may come as a surprise that San Jose ranks among the metro areas with the highest share of married-couple households in the country.

In San Jose, about 54% of households are married couples, well above the national level of 47%. That tells us something important about who lives in the market and who is able to stay there. The data shows that high-cost metros may delay family formation, but they don’t eliminate it. In markets like San Jose, people often marry and have children later, but many still form couples. These people are more likely to be dual-income, highly educated, and more financially stable, and that shows up in the data as well.

For the housing market, this matters. Married-couple households tend to create more stable demand, longer tenures, and different housing needs than households in markets with younger populations. In practice, that also means stronger demand for larger homes, two-and three-bedroom single-family homes, with a focus on finding a home that can grow their family, not just a short-term place to live.

San Jose reminds us how important demographics are, and how who lives there and who can stay define housing demand and the local market.