Gen Z is currently in the most difficult position of generational cohorts for buying homes. Low on the career ladder compared to their Millennial and Gen X counterparts, and without much time in the market for investments to compound, more affordable areas may trump locations favored by older generations, making way for a new wave of housing demand distribution and local economic implications.
With this in mind, SmartAsset examined 2023 mortgage data to identify and rank the metro areas where Gen Z is buying up homes at the fastest rates. The study also compared Gen Z incomes, interest rates and property values for successfully closed homes.
Key Findings
- Gen Zers are buying homes at the fastest rate in the Indianapolis metro area. Just over 1.6% of local Gen Z individuals here bought homes in 2023, more than any other major metro. A total of 2,266 mortgages were issued to those less than 25 years old, with an average property value of $225,000.
- Gen Zers making $63,000 or less are buying homes in these metros. The median new Gen Z homeowner in the Pittsburgh, PA and St. Louis, MO metro areas earns $63,000 annually. Those in the Cleveland, OH metro areas make $62,000, and Gen Z homeowners in the Detroit metro make the least on average: $60,000. St. Louis (second) and Pittsburgh (eighth) also made the top 10 with the highest percentage of local Gen Zers becoming homeowners, thanks in part to sharing the lowest average property value at $165,000 for homes purchased by this group.
- The median home value for new Gen Z homeowners is $305,000. Across 40 of the largest U.S. metro areas, the median property values ranged from $165,000 (Pittsburgh and Detroit metros) to over $1 million in the San Francisco metro. The median income for a Gen Z homebuyer in 2023 across the largest metro areas was $81,000.
- Gen Z mortgagors have the lowest interest rates in the San Antonio metro. Despite a lower than average income for new Gen Z homeowners at $73,000, the average interest rate came in at 5.875%. This is compared with the 6.5% average across new Gen Z mortgages studywide. Acquired property here also costs less than average at $255,000, compared with $305,000 for the studywide median.
- Less than 100 homes were purchased by Gen Z in the San Francisco metro last year. Homes in the Bay Area overall were most expensive for Gen Z. The median home value purchased by Gen Z in San Francisco metro was $1,085,000, and second-highest in the San Jose metro at $965,000, where Gen Zers purchased 157 homes throughout the year.
Top 10 Major Metro Areas Where Gen Z Is Buying Homes
Metro areas are ranked by the percentage of local people less than age 25 who purchased a home with a mortgage in 2023.
- Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, IN
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.64%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 2,266
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.75%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $225,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $65,000
- St. Louis, MO-IL
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.56%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 2,649
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.63%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $185,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $63,000
- Cincinnati, OH-KY-IN
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.52%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 2,279
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.75%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $205,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $66,000
- Jacksonville, FL
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.47%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 1,484
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.25%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $275,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $73,000
- Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News, VA-NC
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.47%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 2,053
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.63%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $265,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $67,000
- Kansas City, MO-KS
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.44%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 1,921
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.63%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $215,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $67,000
- Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.37%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 3,086
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.63%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $285,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $79,500
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.21%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 1,652
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.63%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $165,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $63,000
- Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, TN
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.17%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 1,654
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.38%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $325,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $80,000
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC
- Percent of local Gen Zers who purchased a home in 2023: 1.17%
- Total number of Gen Z mortgages originated in 2023: 2,042
- Median interest rate on Gen Z mortgages: 6.50%
- Median property value of Gen Z purchases: $295,000
- Median income of new Gen Z homebuyers: $76,000
Data and Methodology
To find where Gen Z is buying homes at the fastest rates, SmartAsset reviewed Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data for 2023. Specifically, originated mortgages for people under age 25 were considered, relative to the size of the local population of Gen Z individuals aged 20 to 24 in the same metro area as according to 2022 U.S. Census Bureau data. The median income of new Gen Z homeowners, as well as subject property value and interest rate, were also considered.
Questions about our study? Contact us at press@smartasset.com
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