Baby-boomer homeowners got rich from skyrocketing house prices. Now they can't find retirement housing.
Baby boomers have been the big winners in the US housing market, but as the generation retires, its members are facing a new challenge in finding accessible housing.
Homeowners in the generation — now from 59 to 78 years old —have seen their home equity surge, particularly over the past decade, as a growing home shortage across the US has pushed home prices sky-high.
But as the generation approaches 80, boomers are beginning to suffer from their own housing woes: a severe shortage of accessible and affordable retirement homes. Compounding the housing issue are the rising costs of healthcare and elder care.
With mortgage rates and housing costs high and inventory scarce, many older people are staying put. Nearly 80% of home-owning baby boomers recently surveyed by Redfin said they were planning to age in their current home. And as of 2022, empty-nest boomers owned twice as many homes with three or more bedrooms as millennials with kids. While some boomers simply don't want to downsize or move, others can't afford it or don't have any feasible options.
"Is it aging in place, or is it stuck in place?" said Jennifer Molinsky, the director of Harvard University's Housing an Aging Society Program. "There's a lot of people in the middle, homeowners included, who are stuck."
