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Homeownership in the U.S. stalled amid escalating economic uncertainty and recession fears, with just 65% of Americans owning a home in the second quarter of 2025—virtually unchanged from earlier this year and slightly below 2024 levels.
“Ongoing affordability challenges have limited buyer demand,” says Realtor.com® senior economic research analyst Hannah Jones. “Renting is far more affordable than buying in much of the country, which means more households are opting to rent than to buy today.”
During the spring months, the national homeownership rate inched down from 65.1% in the first quarter of 2025 and remained below the 65.6% level seen a year ago, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The latest homeownership rate marked a five-year low, having fallen to levels not seen since before the COVID-19 pandemic era.
“Homeownership remains out of reach for many due to a combination of high home prices, elevated mortgage rates, and still-constrained inventory in parts of the country,” notes Jones.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the relatively affordable Midwest stood out for having the nation’s highest homeownership rate during the period from April through June, at 69.5%, which was slightly up from the last quarter but down year over year.
“This strength reflects the region’s continued affordability,” explains Jones. “Median home prices remain well below coastal averages. As a result, prospective homeowners in the Midwest face more realistic price-to-income ratios and less strained purchase conditions compared to much of the country.”
The South registered the second-highest level of homeownership in the U.S. in the second quarter of 2025, at 66.6%, down from 67.1% in the first quarter and from 67.2% a year ago.
Meanwhile, Americans living in the Northeast and the West faced the greatest challenges when it comes to homeownership, with quarterly rates clocking in at just 61.4% and 60.7%, respectively, both reflecting year-over-year declines.
Homeownership rates by age continued on their downward trajectory for younger Americans in the second quarter.
Among people under 35 years old, the rate was just 36.4% (-1 percentage point year over year), marking the lowest level across all age groups.
“Until affordability improves meaningfully and supply expands, we can expect homeownership gains to remain modest, particularly among younger and lower-income households,” according to Jones.
In the demographic group of 35- to 44-year-olds, the homeownership rate in Q2 2025 stood at 61% (-1.2 percentage points year over year), while those aged 45 to 54 saw the rate slip to 69.2% (-1.9 percentage point year over year).
Looking at older Americans aged 55 to 64, their homeownership rate reached 75.8%, reflecting a minor quarterly gain, although it remained unchanged on a yearly basis.
Households aged 65 years and older boasted the highest homeownership rate across all demographic groups in this latest quarter, at 78.6%—unchanged from the second quarter of 2024.
Considering the racial and ethnic makeup of U.S. homeownership, the latest census report found that Whites led with 74%, followed by Asians, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders, with 62.1%.
Hispanic homeownership continued to lag in the second quarter at 48.8%, while Black Americans yet again had the nation’s lowest level of homeownership of just 43.9%.
Homeowner vacancies tick up
During the second quarter of this year, the national vacancy rate for homeowner housing stood at 1.1%, up slightly compared with the last quarter but even with Q2 2024, according to the report.
At the state level, Louisiana saw the highest level of homeowner vacancy during the spring months, at 2.2%. In Wisconsin, a mere 0.1% of homes stood empty, marking the lowest share in the U.S.
The median list price for vacant homes in Q2 climbed to $346,700, representing a 15% surge from the previous quarter.
Just under 90% of all housing units in the U.S. were occupied in the second quarter, and roughly 10% were vacant.
Owner-occupied homes made up more than 58% of total housing units (86,159), while renter-occupied units made up 31.3% of the inventory (46,355).
Rental vacancies see annual growth
The vacancy rates of rental housing units stood at 7% in the second quarter of 2025, down from 7.1% at the start of the year but up from 6.6% in spring 2024.
The inventory-rich South had the highest rental vacancy of 9%, followed by the Midwest at 6.6%, while the West and Northeast boasted the lowest vacancy levels, at 5.7% and 5.2%, respectively.
Of the four regions, only the Northeast saw its rental vacancy rate drop over the past year.
The national median asking rent for a vacant rental unit was $1,494 in the second quarter.