Homeownership Rate for D-FW Zoomers Climbs, Affordability Remains a Barrier
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Homeownership remains elusive for many zoomers as they continue to age into the housing market, but there do appear to be glimmers of hope in the Dallas metro.
Almost 9 out of 10 zoomer households in the D-FW area were shelling out rent to a landlord instead of making a mortgage payment in 2023. While that might seem pretty disheartening to those who put stock in homeownership as a cornerstone of the American dream, the share of Generation Z homeowners that year actually reflects some significant growth.
RentCafe recently analyzed zoomer housing data in the Metroplex between 2018 and 2023. They found that the number of Gen Z homeowners grew by a factor of 11 over that period, outpacing the national average, which amounted to a ninefold increase. This put Dallas at the No. 37 spot for homeownership growth when stacked up against the 96 other metros studied by the platform.
All things being equal (and assuming AI doesn’t obliterate the job market), we should expect zoomer homeownership to increase in both raw numbers and market share as the cohort ages — landing on careers, getting raises, earning promotions, etc.
Zoomers are anywhere between 14 and 29 years old at present, with Pew Research Center defining Generation Z as those born between 1997 and 2012. So, we don’t even have the whole demographic in the housing market yet. Even still, any zoomer momentum on the homebuying front should be welcome, especially considering how pessimistic Gen Z is about the prospect of owning a home.
As previously reported by CandysDirt.com, a Clever Offers survey found that despite 90% of Gen Z respondents saying they want to own a home someday, 62% said they were concerned they never will. Elevated home prices, high mortgage rates, and an inability to save for a down payment were cited as their biggest barriers, with some 26% saying they could barely make ends meet as it is.
The natural churn of the housing market is expected to offer some relief on the listing front at some point as more baby boomers age out of their homes, though it’s unclear when that might be since it appears more boomers than ever are determined to die as homeowners, locking up a significant amount of inventory.
At least for now, Generation Z’s best hope in the Dallas area depends on the continuation of the economic momentum North Texas has enjoyed over the past several years. Homeownership growth in the demographic between 2018 and 2023 was fueled by a 151% increase in zoomer income, with the metro adding jobs at a rate of roughly 9%, according to RentCafe.
On the whole, Texas has done quite well amid an influx of corporate relocations and population growth at the expense of states like California and New York. How that has translated to homeownership for Generation Z in different parts of the state, though, is a different story. In the San Antonio area, for instance, zoomers clocked a homeownership rate of about 20.5%. D-FW logged just under 12% during the period of study.
Home prices no doubt figure into that disparity. According to Zillow, the median sale price of a San Antonio home at the end of this January was around $272,000. In Dallas, it was approximately $405,000.
With roughly 88% of the cohort living in rental housing, the Metroplex ranked No. 16 nationally for share of zoomers renting.
