Senior Spotlight: Baby Boomer Homeownership By Metro

Did you know that while Baby Boomers make up 20% of the US population, they account for almost 40% of homeowners? An article published by NBC last week revealed that Americans age 55 and older own the majority of US homes… and broke down the notable geographic differences. 

Geographic Differences in Baby Boomer Homeownership 

- States in the Northeast have the largest share of homes owned by baby boomers.

- Midwest states are more likely to have fewer baby boomer homeowners.

- Major metros with warmer climates across the US also demonstrate Boomer dominant homeownership – such as Tucson, AZ, Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA and Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL. 

The NBC article with data compiled by Construction Coverage also broke down the data by large metros, mid-size metros and small metros with the most and fewest Baby Boomer homeowners. You can find that complete data in the full article; for our purposes we have selected the California regions that made the list of most & fewest Baby Boomers here (and we thought everyone was leaving California!): 

CALIFORNIA METROS W/MOST BABY BOOMER HOMEOWNERS 

LARGE METROS

- Los Angeles-Long Beach – Anaheim, CA (39%) 

- Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA (38.2%) 

MIDSIZE METROS

- Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA (46%)

- Santa Rosa-Petaluma, CA (46%)

- Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventira (42.4%)

SMALL METROS 

- San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles (45.7%)

- Redding, CA (44.2%)

CALIFORNIA METROS W/LEAST BABY BOOMER HOMEOWNERS

LARGE METROS 

- Fresno, CA (34.2%)

MIDSIZE METROS

- Visalia, CA (33.3%) 

- Bakersfield, CA (33.8%)

- Stockton, CA (34/7%)

SMALL METROS 

- Hanford-Corcoran, CA (30.1%)

- Merced, CA (30.9%) 

- Yuba City (32.4%) 

On a state-by-state breakdown, California did not make the list of states with most or fewest Baby Boomers, which is surprising when we talk about the California exodus. Though given their higher equity and accumulation of wealth, it is more feasible that Boomers can afford to retire here if they choose, whereas as many families and new college graduates are seeking more affordable places to build their lives. 

There are pros and cons to everything in life… including where you retire and why. May the choice you make reflect what you want and what (and who!) makes you happy. 

Cheers,

Bobbi 

Bobbi Decker
DRE#00607999

Broker Associate
650.346.5352 cell
650.577.3127 efax
www.bobbidecker.com

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