Millennials Put Down as Much on a Mortgage as Baby Boomers

Have millennials finally ditched the avocado toast?

The generation constantly mocked by its elders for student debt and renting well past 30 is now planning down payments as big as anyone else's.

That's according to a new analysis by LendingTree, which looked at more than 130,000 mortgage purchase inquiries submitted through its platform. Millennials don't just make up the largest share of those shoppers. They're tied with baby boomers for the biggest planned down payment of any generation, at a median of $65,000.

"It makes perfect sense that millennials now dominate home shopping,” says Matt Schulz, LendingTree's chief consumer finance analyst. “They're in their prime homebuying years, with many reaching peak earning power, starting or growing families, and finally having the financial capacity to buy.”

The priciest places to be a millennial homebuyer 

Millennials aren't spreading that $65,000 median evenly across the country. In San Jose, their planned down payment hits $250,000, the single largest down payment of any generation in any of the 50 largest metros. San Francisco isn't far behind at $195,000.

Those two cities aren't a coincidence. Debt.com recently reported that San Francisco now has 37 cities where even a "starter home" costs $1 million or more, and San Jose has 13. 

Millennials planning quarter-million-dollar down payments aren't padding their savings for fun. They're doing the math required to buy into two of the most expensive housing markets in the country.

A reversal from not so long ago

Debt.com has previously reported on millennial homebuyers who told researchers stagnant wages and student debt had made homeownership feel permanently out of reach. That was the dominant millennial homeownership story for years.

“Affordability remains the biggest roadblock for millennial renters,” Rob Warnock, Apartment List research associate, wrote in early 2021. “Especially as home prices have risen throughout a pandemic that has been so damaging to low- and middle-class incomes.”

This new data doesn’t erase the old reporting. It also doesn’t mean the generation is suddenly well-off and wealthy. 

But it does show that after millennials spent a decade being written off as too broke and too indebted to buy, their down payments are now matching those of the generation with the most time to save. 

"It is striking that millennials are planning down payments that match baby boomers," Schulz adds. "After years of wrestling with debt, saving what they can and advancing in their careers, many millennials are finally in a position to make the kind of upfront investment that once seemed out of reach. It's a big deal."

If you're weighing how much to put down, Debt.com's Mortgage Calculator can help you see how different down payment amounts affect your monthly payment, and the Savings Calculator can help you map out a timeline to hit your target. 

And if debt is what's slowing down your ability to save or qualify for a mortgage, call (855) 772-3833 to talk through your options with a debt expert.