First-time buyers navigating the market nowadays are older, wealthier and more likely to rely on inheritance or financial gifts from family, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ newly released 2026 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers report. The median age of first-time home buyers was 40 this year, matching last year’s all-time high—a sharp contrast to the 1980s when first-time buyers were typically in their late 20s.
For some, the path to homeownership now involves waiting longer, saving more and building enough financial cushion to enter the market. Others are turning to family wealth, including inheritances and family gifts, to help bridge the affordability gap.
The share of first-time buyers entering the market is about half what it once was—just 22% this year, only a slight bump up from last year’s all-time low of 21%, according to NAR’s research. Prior to 2008, first-time buyers traditionally comprised 40% of home sales.
Delaying homeownership by just one decade could have significant consequences for wealth accumulation among younger generations, potentially costing them an estimated $150,000 in equity gains, according to NAR estimates.
“Affordability remains the biggest hurdle for first-time buyers,” says Jessica Lautz, NAR’s deputy chief economist. “Those saving on their own continue to face high rent, student debt and a shortage of homes they can afford.”
Nine in 10 adults under the age of 40 say it’s harder for their generation to buy a home than it was for their parents’ generation, according to a Pew Research Center survey. But about 80% buyers surveyed by NAR still rate homeownership as a strong investment, and 32% say it’s better than owning stocks.
The Wait: More First-Time Buyers Get Older and Wealthier
A record 10% of first-time buyers paid all-cash over the past year, as inheritances and other generational wealth transfers increasingly shape the path to homeownership, according to NAR research.
“The housing market is beginning to see a generational transfer of wealth,” Lautz says. “It’s not yet a tsunami, but it is changing who can buy a first home and when. Because people are living longer, the generation receiving the wealth is no longer younger adults. Many are reaching middle age before they can buy their first home.”
Indeed, these all-cash, first-time buyers tend to be significantly older, with a median age of 54. By comparison, first-time buyers who financed their home purchase were 38—16 years younger. The growing age gap between cash and financed buyers is pushing up the overall median age of first-time buyers, Lautz says.
It’s also prompting a different type of first-time buyer to emerge—one who may already have grown children or even considering retirement within the next decade. More first-time buyers are looking beyond “starter homes” and when they do enter the market are expecting to own that same home for a median of 15 years, up from 7 years in 2007, NAR research shows.
For Those on the Sidelines, They’re Saving Up
For buyers without an inheritance or family wealth to tap, they’re finding saving up for a down payment remains the main hurdle preventing them from buying sooner.
The median down payment for first-time buyers was 9% over the past year compared to 19% among repeat buyers, who are increasingly leveraging equity from a previous sale for their next home purchase, according to NAR. First-time buyers are compiling their down payment from multiple sources: 30% used financial assets such as stocks, bonds, retirement accounts or cryptocurrency, and 25% used gifts or loans from relatives and friends.
Related: Parents Are Saving Up to Help Their Kids Buy a Home
Personal savings remains the leading source of down payment funds. One way young adults are building those savings: Living with their parents longer. As high housing costs delay homeownership, more are staying at home into adulthood. In 2025, 16.4% of adults ages 25 to 34 lived with their parents, U.S. Census data shows.
For some, skipping the rental market allows them to save more quickly and move directly into homeownership. In 1993, 12% of first-time buyers lived with family before purchasing their first home. By 2026, that share climbed to 21%, according to NAR’s research.
Other ways that are making homeownership more attainable, include buying a home with roommates. The share of buyers purchasing with non-romantic roommates reached an all-time high of 4%. Buying with roommates can help buyers share housing costs. Or, they are pooling resources and sharing housing costs by purchasing a multigenerational home, living with multiple ages and family members under one roof. About 14% of buyers purchased a multigenerational home over the past year, according to NAR’s report.
“People are pooling funds in different ways, both for first-time home buyers but also repeat buyers in the market,” Lautz says. “We know that housing affordability is really difficult for young adults. So they’re thinking about different ways to enter the housing market—maybe it’s a roommate situation or with a family member in a multi-generational home, or just waiting for a generational transfer of wealth that perhaps is coming down the line for them. All of these factors are really reshaping the housing market.”
