There’s a growing housing disparity in America between who has the square footage and who needs it. According to a new Redfin report, which analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data from 2024, baby boomers living in one- to two-adult households own 28% of large homes. By comparison, millennials with children living at home own 16% of those houses—barely more than half as much. Gen Z parents own less than 1% of the nation’s large homes.
Thus, millennials with kids are facing both affordability and inventory challenges, but at the same time, baby boomers have little financial incentive to move, and even if they did, there is currently limited inventory of reasonably priced, small, one-story homes for them to buy.
More than one-quarter (28%) of millennials aren’t buying a home in the near future because mortgage rates are too high, the most commonly cited reason for not buying among people in that age group who are either renters or long-term homeowners unlikely to move soon, according to a November 2025 Redfin survey fielded by Ipsos. One in five (20%) aren’t buying a home soon because they’re unable to save for a down payment. Some millennials just don’t want to buy a home, as 13% prefer the flexibility of a rental lease, and 6% don’t want to put in the effort to maintain a home.
At the same time, many baby boomers have little financial incentive to move, often benefiting from low mortgage rates or fully paid-off homes. Nearly three in five (57.8%) baby boomer homeowners have no mortgage; their home is fully paid off.
There are also social and lifestyle reasons for them not to move. Baby boomers, in their 60s and 70s, may want to stay where they’ve lived for many years, close to friends, family, work and/or recreational activities. Another reason baby boomers own more large homes is simply because they’re older and have had more time to earn and save money, and use it to buy large homes.
Redfin also found that the median age of first-time homebuyers has lowered, from 38 in 2018 to 35 in 2025, a sign that at least some housing inventory is being sold to younger Americans. Additionally, Gen Z’s homeownership rate rose in 2025, and millennials gained marginally as well.
