The typical down payment during the first quarter was $23,400, a 19% decline from one year before.
According to new data from Realtor.com, this marked the fourth consecutive quarterly decline in down payments and the lowest level since 2021. And while it was above the $12,500 median of the pre-pandemic first quarter of 2019, it was also lower than the $32,700 peak of the second quarter of 2024.
“Down payments are falling as the housing market slowly tilts toward buyers,” said Hannah Jones, senior economist at Realtor.com. “High prices and borrowing costs continue to test affordability, and while conditions are improving, some of the buyers re-entering the market are doing so via government-backed programs that have lower down payment requirements. That tells us the market is broadening, but the path to homeownership remains a difficult one for many households.”
Realtor.com also determined the typical buyer FICO score has trended downward since mid-2025, settling at 733 in the first quarter. This was attributed to more buyers relying on government-backed programs for obtaining homeownership, with FHA and VA loans now accounting for more than one-third of all purchase mortgages as the share of conforming loans has fallen to its lowest level since 2019.
“Government-backed programs are serving as a critical pressure valve, keeping the door to homeownership open for buyers who might otherwise be shut out entirely,” said Jones. “But the growing reliance on FHA and VA financing also reflects how much the conventional path to homeownership has narrowed for buyers without significant cash reserves.”
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