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Boomers are only making the 2021 housing crisis worse
Boomers are staying put in their houses as they age. That could be a big problem for other generations who want to build wealth through real estate.
Baby boomers hold more real-estate wealth than any other generation.
The Silent Generation held that distinction until 2001, according to Michael Kolomatsky’s analysis of Federal Reserve Data for The New York Times. As was typical of older generations, many had begun selling their homes to move in with their families or into assisted-living facilities or nursing homes, leaving boomers to take over as the biggest wealth holders in real estate.
But boomers are now breaking tradition. They’ve surpassed the Silent Generation, per the Times’ data analysis, holding the most real estate wealth of any generation for the past 20 years. While this peaked in 2011 at about 49%, boomers still hold 44% of real estate wealth in 2021, compared to 31% of Gen Xers, the next richest generation. By this token, Gen Xers should have held the most real estate wealth as of 2017, but they’re still far behind.
It’s a sign that boomers are “aging in place,” Kolomatsky writes, a growing concept that the pandemic has exacerbated. It’s partly because some boomers are cautious of nursing homes in a Covid era, he…
