The percentage of first-time home buyers has reached a record low while the typical age of first-time buyers hit a 40-year high, according to the 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers report published by the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
For the transactional period between July 2024 and June 2025, NAR found 21% of home purchases were made by first-time buyers while the typical age of first-time buyers rose to 40 years old. The median age of repeat buyers was 62, while the median age of all buyers was 59.
Jessica Lautz NAR deputy chief economist and vice president of research, expressed concern on this data, observing, “The historically low share of first-time buyers underscores the real-world consequences of a housing market starved for affordable inventory. The share of first-time buyers in the market has contracted by 50% since 2007 – right before the Great Recession. The implications for the housing market are staggering. Today’s first-time buyers are building less housing wealth and will likely have fewer moves over a lifetime as a result.”
NAR also found the home purchases in the period being analyzed carried a 10% median down payment, matching the highest level recorded since 1989. The top sources for down payment were personal savings (59%), followed by financial assets including such as a 401(k), stocks, or cryptocurrency (26%), and gifts or loans from family and friends (22%).
As for the sellers, NAR determined the median time in the home before selling was 11 years, an all-time high. Among the sellers, 50% purchased a newer home while 34% purchased a larger home.
The survey also found 88% of all homebuyers used a real estate agent or broker while 91% of sellers used an agent, a share that is equal to the highest percentage on record.
Shannon McGahn, NAR executive vice president and chief advocacy officer, added, “Today, we must focus on policies that address the root cause of the affordability crisis: inadequate housing supply. That means both unlocking existing inventory and enabling new construction. We need solutions that encourage more owners to sell, revitalize underused properties, streamline local zoning and permitting barriers, and modernize construction methods to build more homes faster and more affordably. These commonsense reforms make homes more affordable, restore opportunity, and help revive the dream of homeownership for generations to come.”
To many corporate purchases for the last 10 years have put the first time home buyer out of the market.