Almost Half of This Generation Is Struggling to Save up for a Down Payment

Millennials are most likely to face obstacles like student loan debt, high rents, and rising home prices when saving. However, a new report says that Generation X is having the hardest time saving up for a new home.

The National Association of Realtors report is based on survey data collected throughout 2017 from 4,000 non-homeowner respondents. Nearly half of Generation X respondents, 47 percent, said they were having trouble saving up for a down payment on a house, versus 23 percent of millennial respondents, Realtor.com reports. Gen Xers “are at an age where they may have children, car loans, credit card debt," says Jessica Lautz, NAR's managing director of survey research. "They're also less likely to be able to move back home [with their parents] to pay down debt."

And despite 82 percent of non-owners aspiring to own a home in the future, the main reason that many are unable to do so is because they can't afford it. Nationally, annual home list prices were up a median 7.8 percent as of Jan. 1, according to realtor.com data. "They believe that homeownership is part of their American dream," says Lautz. But "[they're] feeling priced out of the home-buying market."

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