Homeownership rate revealed to be lower than thought

A new Federal Reserve measure has found that actual homeownership rates in the US are significantly lower than the commonly cited 65% rate. According to the Homeowners-to-Population Ratio (HPOP), just 53% of American adults own homes, a stark contrast to the traditional homeownership rates tracked by the Census Bureau.

Flawed data obscures reality

The HPOP statistic distinguishes between the share of homes occupied by their owners and the share of adults who own property. This clarifies that more than one in eight US adults live in owner-occupied homes without owning them, often due to adult children still living with parents or roommates who own the property.

Senior economist Erik Hembre at the Minneapolis Fed, a co-author of the report, emphasized the importance of measuring the right thing, as policies could be improperly designed based on flawed data.

Homeownership barriers intensify

Georgetown University real estate professor Francesco D'Acunto said the HPOP underscores just how steep barriers to homeownership have become.