Who’s Buying and Who’s Not in the Housing Market

By Melissa Dittmann Tracey

The housing market is ushering in two very different types of buyers: Buyers who are flush with equity and then buyers who are struggling to get a foothold.

Many home buyers today are equity-rich, leveraging cash from a previous home sales. They also tend to skew older, having built up years of equity. On the other hand, many younger first-time buyers are increasingly absent.

“Unfolding in the housing market is a tale of two cities,” says Jessica Lautz, NAR deputy chief economist and vice president of research. “We’re seeing buyers with significant housing equity making larger down payments and all-cash offers, while first-time buyers continue to struggle to enter the market.”

The National Association of REALTORS^®’ newly released 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers report highlights how sharply the market has split—and what that means for real estate professionals in serving the clients they’re increasingly finding in the market.

Who’s Buying: Repeat and Cash Buyers, Older and Single

Real estate agents may be finding that competition is fierce for cash-ready clients. All-cash purchases have surged to about a quarter—or 26%—of all transactions, the highest level on record, according to NAR’s research. Many buyers are using their equity from a previous home sale to avoid financing altogether and bypass elevated mortgage rates.

Repeat buyers are increasingly a powerful force in the housing market: The median down payment among this group rose to 23%, and nearly one in three paid fully in cash in their home purchase. Long-time owners have accumulated deep wealth cushions—an average of $140,900 in added equity over the past five years, according to NAR research.

The typical home buyer profile continues to evolve. Married couples still make up the majority of recent buyers (at 61%), but single women remain a significant force at 21%, outpacing single men at 9%. Recent buyers also tend to skew older: The median age of buyers rose again this year—to 40 for first-timer buyers and 62 for repeat buyers.

For REALTORS^®, these demographic shifts highlight the need for targeted marketing and property positioning: Many single professionals are seeking turnkey condos, downsizers may be prioritizing accessibility and “empty nesters” may be in search for low-maintenance homes with lifestyle amenities.

Who’s Not Buying: First-Time Buyers and Buyers With Children

First-time buyers now account for just 21% of the market, the lowest share since NAR began tracking in 1981. Prior to the Great Recession, first-time home buyers consistently represented about 40% of home sales.

Affordability challenges, student debt and high rents continue to delay homeownership for younger buyers. The median age of first-time buyers has climbed to 40, compared to the late 20s a few decades ago.

“For generations, access to homeownership has been the primary way Americans build wealth,” says Shannon McGahn, NAR’s executive vice president of advocacy. “Delayed or denied homeownership until age 40—instead of 30—can mean losing roughly $150,000 in equity on a typical starter home.”

Those who do enter the market often rely on multiple funding sources—savings, retirement accounts or help from family. Overall, entry-level activity remains historically weak in the housing market.

First-time home buyers aren’t the only ones buying homes less—many recent buyers are childless. Only 24% of recent buyers had children under 18, compared to 58% in 1985, NAR’s data shows. Among those households, 11% had one child, 9% had two and only 5% had three or more. NAR notes that declining birth rates, rising childcare costs and an older buyer pool is all playing a role in the decline.

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