Home economics gets a family makeover

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Published Date 6/9/2025

Sometimes it’s interesting to note how America lives. What makes them tick when it comes to home. Recently, Realtor’s Snejana Ferberov offers a snapshot of how — of all demographic groups — Gen X (people born between 1965 and 1980) —accounted for the largest share of homes bought with the intention of housing several generations of the same family.

Gleaned from a study dubbed the Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers report by the National Association of Realtors, she reveals that multigenerational dwellings made up 17% of home purchases last year, representing an all-time high and defining multigenerational homes as those that comprise more than one generation, such as adult siblings, adult children, or grandparents.

"The rise in multigenerational home buying underscores a broader trend driven by economic necessity and evolving family dynamics, as it offers a practical and supportive living arrangement that resonates with many families, particularly in times of economic uncertainty and changing social dynamics," writes Amethyst Marroquin, research assistant for NAR.

A recent NAR report tells us that while 21% of Gen X buyers led in the purchase of multigenerational homes, they were followed by younger baby boomers between ages of 60 and 69, at 15%; and older millennials between the ages of 35 and 44, at 12%. And all of this shift happened over the past decade, pushing Gen X, also known as the "sandwich generation," to the top of the multigenerational housing market. Although the article never mentioned it, it’s not unreasonable to believe the pandemic had something to do with it.

This is in comparison to 2013, when Gen X made up just 12% of multigenerational homebuyers. "The cost of homeownership has climbed significantly over the last few years and, as a result, buyers have gotten creative," says Realtor.com senior economic research analyst Hannah Jones. "One way to offset high housing costs is by combining forces and buying with family."

In the meantime, younger baby boomers have seen their share of the multigenerational market noticeably shrink, from 22% in 2013 to 15% in 2025. And last year, more than a 30% of homebuyers cited "cost savings" as the main reason for buying a multigenerational home, up from 15% in 2015, according to the NAR report.

With rising mortgage rates, many Americans have found it difficult to afford a home on their own. And not surprisingly, NAR researchers found that a growing number of adult children were living with their parents.

According to the report, 21% of respondents cited their children over the age of 18 moving back with them as a reason for their buying a multigenerational home, up from just 11% a decade earlier.

Meanwhile, a fifth of respondents shared that their grown children had never left home in the first place, up from just 7% in 2015, underscoring the rising popularity of multigenerational living arrangements, driven by both economic factors and family dynamics, including high living costs, student loan debt, and difficulties in finding well-paying jobs, according to Farberov.

She reports that as a result of these trends, Gen X and boomer households are more likely than other demographic groups to include adult children who have returned home because of economic hardships. Although younger buyers are still in the early stage of their career, having some help from their parents can be beneficial to boost savings and housing prospects down the line.

Older millennials? According to data parsed by NAR experts, they are now moving in with their aging parents. “Thirty-five percent of people in their late mid-30s to mid-40s cited their aging parents' health and caretaking responsibilities as a reason for their decision to purchase a multigenerational home,” says Farberov. “Additionally, nearly a third of older millennials reported that they bought their homes to spend more time with their parents in their golden years.

As families continue to adapt to economic uncertainty and social shifts, multigenerational living is likely to become the rule and not the exception to it in the housing market.

Realtor, TBWS

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