- The commonly cited U.S. homeownership rate of 65% is actually the owner-occupancy rate, which measures housing units occupied by owners, not individuals.
- A new measure, the Homeowners-to-Population Ratio (HPOP), calculates the share of adults who own their home, yielding a rate of 53% for the U.S.
- HPOP accounts for all adults, including those living in group quarters (e.g., dorms, nursing homes) and co-residents who are not owners, providing a more accurate picture.
- Using HPOP, homeownership among adults under 35 is 22% compared to 37% under the owner-occupancy rate, highlighting how young adults are often misrepresented.
- HPOP reveals different trends over time: young adult homeownership fell from 2006 to 2015 then rose, while older adults (70+) saw a steady increase of 5 percentage points.
- At the state level, every state has a lower HPOP than owner-occupancy rate, with larger gaps in high-cost states like Hawaii (18.9 percentage points) and smaller gaps in affordable states like North Dakota (3.9 points).
- HPOP better reflects the relationship between housing costs and homeownership, as higher costs encourage shared living and widen the gap between the two measures.
- The HPOP measure is more suitable for policy discussions, such as land use regulations and the long-term financial impacts on young adults living with homeowner parents.