Housing Crisis Deepens as Homeownership Slips Out of Reach for Millions

Experts say homeownership is slipping out of reach and rent is becoming unaffordable — leaving in its wake a full-blown housing crisis.

A new report reveals homeownership is now unattainable for a record number of Americans.

In Utah, one of the nation’s fastest-growing states, home prices have climbed 44 percent in just two years, far outpacing the national average of about eight percent. The surge has priced out many families, pushing the average home price above half a million dollars.

It’s a problem fueled by basic economics: too many buyers and not enough homes. Nationwide, experts estimate a shortage of roughly six million units.

“Most people who are renting here in Utah are spending over 50% of their income on housing,” said Zoe Newmann with the Utah Housing Coalition. 

Newmann sees a vast, growing difference between what people earn and what they need to afford a home. “From 2020 to 2025, the housing wage has grown over ten dollars — that is insane,” Newmann exclaimed.

Over the past 10 years, mortgage payments have more than doubled in major U.S. cities, driven largely by higher interest rates. According to the National Association of Realtors, only 1-in-5 households can afford a median-priced home in America – the lowest share in decades. 

Dr. Simon Stevenson at Old Dominion University in Virginia explains that the very definition of “affordable housing” no longer applies only to the poorest. 

“It’s not just building affordable housing – it’s building housing that the average household, especially people buying for the first time, can afford,” said Dr. Stevenson. 

He says it’s a multi-faceted pool of problems, including wages not keeping up with inflation, first-time home buyers struggling to qualify for a mortgage, and folks competing with a surge of all-cash buyers. 

“There aren’t that many sellers because people are reluctant to sell. You know, if they locked in what they bought or refinanced four, five, six years ago when rates were down to around 3 percent, you’re not going to sell unless you have to,” Dr. Stevenson continued. 

The lack of affordability is also delaying generational milestones, as many young people put off buying a home – or even starting a family. 
 
“People are buying later,” said Dr. Stevenson. “In the 60s and 70s, people were settling down and marrying earlier, so people were buying a home — my dad was 24, my mom was 23. They bought a house. That doesn’t happen. The affordability issue is playing a big role.”

Among those hardest hit are seniors on fixed incomes and people with disabilities. For those who can afford it, Stevenson advises that now could be the time to act. With demand cooled, prices could climb again as soon as rates fall.  

“If you could afford to buy now, then you can refinance in three or four years’ time, and reduce those monthly costs, and I think, sort of be in a better position,” he said. 

For many families, however, the American dream of homeownership is shrinking. According to the National Association of Realtors, only about 20% can now afford a median-priced home – a multi-decade low. Without policy shifts or a market correction, experts warn that the dream will continue to slip further out of reach.