Americans’ Homeownership Preference Rises for First Time Since 2023, Report Says as Buyers Reconsider Renting
For many Americans, the question is no longer whether the housing market feels fair. It is whether waiting is still helping.
After years of high prices, stubborn mortgage rates, tight inventory, and rent checks that seem to disappear before the month has even begun, a new Bank of America report suggests a quiet shift in how people think about homeownership. More Americans now say they would rather buy a home than rent or live with family, the first time that sentiment has turned positive since 2023.
The number is not overwhelming, but it is meaningful: 53% of respondents in Bank of America’s 2026 Homebuyer Insights Report said buying is the better option, compared with 47% who favored renting or moving in with family. That small majority says something larger about the national mood. Many people are still worried about affordability. Many still feel priced out. But fewer are willing to sit on the sidelines forever.
Buyers Are Tired of Waiting for the Perfect Market
For the last few years, the housing conversation has sounded almost frozen. Buyers were told to wait for mortgage rates to fall. Wait for prices to cool. Wait for more homes to hit the market. Wait for the math to finally make sense.
That patience may be wearing thin. Bank of America found that 71% of prospective buyers are still waiting for prices and interest rates to come down before buying, down from 75% in 2025. The change is especially visible among younger adults. Gen Z and millennials ,many of whom have spent their adult years watching homeownership grow further out of reach, appear less willing to delay their plans indefinitely.
That does not mean people suddenly think homes are affordable. It means some are accepting that the “normal” they were hoping for may not return anytime soon. For renters in cities where a lease renewal can feel like a warning letter, buying may still look expensive, but at least it comes with a sense of permanence.
The Dream Is Still Strong, Even When the Math Hurts
The emotional pull of homeownership remains powerful. Bank of America’s report found that 90% of respondents said a home is a valuable investment, up from 79% in 2025. Another 94% said homeownership provides stability, compared with 83% last year.
That word stability is doing a lot of work right now. For families, it can mean staying in the same school district. For young adults, it can mean finally having a place that does not depend on a landlord’s next decision. For older homeowners, it can mean holding onto equity in a market where almost everything else feels more expensive.
Still, the gap between desire and reality remains wide. The same report found that 58% of prospective buyers named expensive home prices as a top reason for delaying a purchase, up from 46% in 2025. High interest rates were also a major concern, cited by 47% of prospective buyers, compared with 40% last year.
In other words, Americans are not ignoring the cost. They are looking at the cost and asking whether renting forever is any safer.
Renting Is Still Cheaper in Many Places
The twist is that buying may feel more attractive even when renting remains the cheaper monthly option. Realtors report on March 2026 found that renting a starter home was still more affordable than buying one across the 50 largest U.S. metro areas.
On average, buying a starter home costs about $920 more per month than renting a similar place. That gap matters. It can be the difference between saving money and living paycheck to paycheck. In high-cost markets such as San Jose, Los Angeles, Seattle, and Austin, the monthly difference can be even sharper.
But the rental advantage has narrowed compared with a year ago. Realtors reported that the buy-versus-rent gap shrank from $1,056 in March 2025 to $920 in March 2026. That does not make buying cheap. It does, however, give some households a reason to start running the numbers again instead of assuming the door is closed.
Mortgage Rates Are Still Setting the Mood
Mortgage rates remain one of the biggest forces shaping the market. Freddie Mac reported that the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.47% as of June 18, 2026. That is down from 6.81% a year earlier, but still high enough to keep many buyers cautious.
Bank of America expects mortgage rates to remain in the 6.25%-6.75% range this year, according to Reuters. That outlook may be part of the reason buyers are changing their behavior. If rates are not expected to drop sharply, some households may decide that waiting another year could simply mean paying more rent without getting closer to ownership.
That is the uncomfortable calculation many Americans now face: buy in a hard market, or keep renting and hope the market softens later.
Younger Buyers Are Getting Creative
The report also shows how younger buyers are adapting. Bank of America found that 28% of Gen Z respondents are taking on extra jobs to make homeownership more attainable. Another 32% are considering buying with friends or family, and 31% are planning to use down payment assistance programs.
That is not the old version of the American dream, where one income and a modest down payment could open the door. This is a more complicated version, shaped by side gigs, shared purchases, family help, and constant comparison shopping.
Technology is also entering the process. One in five prospective buyers and current homeowners said they used AI tools or chatbots in the past year for homebuying research. Many used them to estimate affordability, calculate mortgage payments, research neighborhoods, or understand closing costs. But Bank of America also found that buyers still prefer human help for major steps such as touring homes and handling legal or contract questions.
What Happens Next for the Housing Market
The next few months may come down to three things: mortgage rates, inventory, and whether sellers begin adjusting prices enough to meet buyers where they are.
If rates drift lower, more buyers may enter the market. If they rise again, the optimism could cool quickly. If more homeowners decide to sell, buyers may finally have more choices. But if inventory stays tight in popular areas, competition could keep prices elevated.
Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies has warned that homeownership costs remain near record highs. The monthly cost of buying the median-priced home was about $3,120 in late 2025, nearly double the level from five years earlier.
That is the reality behind the optimism. The desire to buy is rising, but the market is still asking Americans to stretch.
Why This Shift Matters
This report does not mean the housing crisis is over. It does not mean renters are suddenly comfortable, or that first-time buyers have stopped worrying about down payments, closing costs, insurance, taxes, and repairs. What it shows is something more human: people are tired of feeling parked in place.
For many Americans, a home is not just an investment. It is a child’s bedroom, a quiet kitchen after work, a yard for the dog, and a front door that does not come with a renewal notice every 12 months.
Even in a difficult market, that dream still has weight. The surprising part is not that buying remains hard. Everyone already knows that. The surprising part is that after years of being told to wait, more Americans appear ready to move anyway.
