The cost of living has become increasingly expensive, especially for those suffocating under the tremendous weight of personal debt.
Millennials, a generation that has racked up at least $1.3 trillion in student loan debt, are now projected to dominate the housing market in the coming years.
But are these young adults able to afford housing while grappling with debt? Well, the latest data from Redfin shows dwindling affordability prospects.
According to the company, 67.3% of homes across all metros were affordable to Millennials in 2018, a moderate decrease from 71.2% in 2017.
These are the most affordable Millennial markets:
(Click to enlarge; image courtesy of Redfin)
St. Louis was recognized as the most affordable metro, with more than 88% of homes listed for sale being affordable to those making the area’s Millennial median household income of $68,805.
Redfin Agent Amanda Hurtt said she’s noticed the area has become more popular over the last few years for Millennials, particularly those who are buying a home for the first time.
“With big employers like Boeing and Mastercard, St. Louis is experiencing a lot of employment growth right now. A lot of Millennials are moving into the area for jobs,” Hurtt said.
Notably, Redfin discovered that a majority of affordable Millennial metros were located in inland markets.
"In some coastal areas, only a small portion of homes are affordable to the typical Millennial—but in certain inland cities, nearly 90% of the housing market is affordable for the generation,” Redfin writes.
Unsurprisingly, Redfin's data highlights that the majority of the least affordable metros for Millennials, were all located in coastal states like California, New York and Florida. In fact, Los Angeles, was listed as the most unaffordable city with just 18.5% within Millennials' reach.
“San Jose, San Diego and San Francisco are also among the regions with the smallest portion of affordable homes for Millennials, all with less than 40% of homes affordable to young professionals,” Redfin said. “And in all the areas except Miami, which has remained essentially flat, the percentage of affordable homes for sale dropped from 2017 to 2018.”
These are the least affordable Millennial markets:
(Click to enlarge; image courtesy of Redfin)
NOTE: In order to determine Millennial affordability, Redfin considered all active homes between 2017 and 2018 that were affordable to those making the area’s median income. The data in this report is limited to households with an age range of 24 to 44.
