Offering a realistic view of how renters are feeling about the current housing market, 66% say current home prices make them feel hopeless and 72% say they’ll never be able to afford to own a home, according to a new survey from Home Bay.
Based on responses from 1,000 renters across the U.S., 76% say homes are not affordable for the average American and 77% say the nation has an affordable housing crisis, while 24% say they spend at least 50% of their income on rent. Most renters, 85%, blame inflation for the shortage of affordable homes, and 84% blame high interest rates.
On average, renters say they need to earn an additional $74,219 annually to afford the average home in 2023. Top reasons renters say they don’t currently own a home include being unable to afford one in general, 78%; not having enough for a down payment, 72%; high interest rates, 71%; they’re not ready to own a home, 47%; they have bad credit, 46%; or they have too much debt, 40%.
While 35% of renters say owning a home is not part of their American dream—including 28% who say it used to be but isn’t anymore—85% say they still want to own a home at some point. To pursue homeownership, 63% say they are willing to take on a second job.
Despite the willingness to cut back and take on additional jobs, 74% of renters still say they are unable to afford to put any money toward saving for a down payment. Regardless of the inability to purchase, 58% say they regularly browse home-buying websites—especially millennials at 66%.
As 69% of renters say their parents were/are homeowners, more than 3 in 5, or 61%, believe Gen Z and millennials will never achieve the same level of homeownership rates as baby boomers. Only 44% believe homeownership is attainable for the average American in 2023, but 69% say it’s not too late for the U.S. to solve its housing crisis.