Okay, Boomer. Sell the House.

Somewhere along the line from housing being shelter to housing becoming a commodity, the idea of aging in place got lost and homes became inventory that needs to cycle. I think the series makes that point--especially in Part 2. Thanks for reading, Nina!

Totally agree Nina Hollander, Broker 

Kat Palmiotti 🥰

Susan Isaacs, Real Estate Strategist hi Susan... this is a topic of interest to me... as I've "broken" more life rules than most people can count. And personally, I'm tired of people asking me when we are going to downsize. I keep telling them we already downsized when we moved to our current 3,300 sf home from out 6,000 sf home! Besides, I have no interest in go backwards and living in small spaces like I did when I was young and poor. That's not why I worked so hard all my life.

Damn right! I love my little mortgage, not much left now, I adore my 2 acres, my 4600 square feet even though likely I only use 1/3rd of it, and location, location no one can beat mine. Let's just say I bought this house for a reason. 

And a good percentage of Boomers are putting their homes on the market, so those who don't wish to give them should feel no pressure to do so. These are very personal decisions.

Nina Hollander, Broker 

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Fred Griffin Florida Real Estate I guess this topic generated some intense interest!

And that's not uncommon! The series makes the point that downsizers need to have agreeable choices. Our communities are part of our support system and social structure. That's important.

Yes! And also there's something to be said for passing real estate down to the stewardship of family members.

Smart to choose a single floor plan Dorie!  And wonderful to have no debt as we age. I'm sorry for the loss of your husband. You must have so many wonderful memories there. 🤗

Grandbaby! Yay! Family is the most important thing. Yes, negative headlines do seem to make it to the top of news feeds, Leanne. I encountered this issue in a news feed, through that angry Reddit rant. I felt a little clarification was in order. And I learned a lot in the process of writing it. Thanks for reading!

Hi Kathleen, thanks for your comment! It echos much of what was in my head when I embarked on a ridiculous amount of research to disprove the claims made in that "Reddit Rant." And then I found out that I was... well... wrong. At least to a good extent.

No, the housing crisis wasn't created by Boomers, but Boomers made a hefty contribution.

Yes, remaining in our homes is our prerogative, and the "rant" totally ignores the fact a lot of Boomers ARE moving. 55% of all active or recent home sellers are Boomers, and 42% of all home buyers are Boomers. So we're not to blame for today's shortages in terms of inventory. A massive transfer of Boomer housing stock is starting to flow into the market as older portions of the generation die or downsize.

As far as earning their right to homeownership, every homeowner does that to some extent, right? Boomers Data shows that the vast majority of Boomers didn’t inherit their first homes, they bought them independently, but the post-WWII economic expansion and Roosevelt’s New Deal allowed them to do that; two conditions our newer generations don't benefit from. Instead, Millennials and Gen Z were handed a pretty tough real estate market and a rough job market at the same time. 

🤣 "expiring"  We *used* to be the largest generation, but Millennials and Gen Z have both overtaken boomers in total population size. In the not-so-distant future, Gen Z, Gen Alpha and Gen Beta will be writing Reddit Rants about them! (I will say, though, that Millennials have done a lot to try to reverse some of the ills of the housing market, so kudos to them) Aging in place is kind of the ideal for many, right? If it ain't broke...  Thanks for your comment Jan, and for reading!

Ha ha, that wealth is about to flow through markets. Boomers' "Great Wealth Transfer" is already underway. As of 2026, that generation controls abt $90 - $93 trillion in assets (over 50% of all household wealth in the U.S.). Hope you get a windfall that finances your Netflix for years to come! : )

You kinda summarized a good portion of my posts right there, William!  But there's also exclusionary zoning and all kinds of intentional restrictions that have contributed to pricing increases and the shortage of "starter homes." It's interesting to look at the cycle of ownership generation by generation, and see the impact each has had, all leading to the availability and affordability issues we're seeing today with our youngest generations. Appreciate your comment and thanks for reading!

Hi Fred, thanks for your comment. My post(s) were definitely prompted by the "Reddit Rant" I encountered online. While its tone was angry and off-putting, it did make a few valid points. The more I researched, the more valid I saw that the anger was. As Part II of the series shows, there's a lot of blame to spread around concerning housing issues in the U.S. Studies by NAHB show that govt regulations don't double the price of housing, but they do account for 26.4% of the final price of a new construction single-family home. Part II talks about those housing regulations. The top 3 are  building codes (energy & safety), building & permit fees and architectural design standards, all of which are primarily locally (not federally) driven (confirmed by NAHB). So it's not "big government" or the younger generations that have contributed heavily to these issues, it's older generations, as the post details. Lattes have nothing to do with it. And younger generations start investing significantly earlier and devote a higher % of their net worth) to equities than Boomers or Gen X did at the same age. They're priced out of the housing market, so they build savings and wealth through alternate markets. They were sold the idea that they needed a college education to compete in the job market, then entered the job market with heavy debt during the financial crisis of 2008 and its aftermath. They didn't create that terrible job market. Boomers have been the largest age cohort in the electorate since the early 1980s. Over the past 40 years, the volume of federal regulations grew most significantly during the late 1980s - 2010s.

Thanks Patricia! The feature was a surprise, and a nice one!  Your point about having a home that's paid for and spacious not being a good tradeoff for a smaller space that would cost more is exactly the reason many 55+ folks don't sell. And the rental market is mercenary! I hear the comment about not wanting to live in an environment made up only of people in an upper age group a lot, too, and it's understandable. What stands out most to me is your mention of having the type of home that younger generations aren't showing interest in, and the idea that a lot of renovation capital would need to be spent to bring it up to a marketable condition for that demographic. That's a factor this topic doesn't often include, and an important one. Thanks for reading and commenting! Always nice to hear from you 😊

It's true that in some areas institutional investors like Blackstone and Invitation Homes have intensified pricing pressure in specific markets, they own only 1-2% of U.S. rental homes. The "mom and pop" investor is by far the largest ownership group of investment homes. The 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act reins in large institutional investors, but it will only have a limited impact because their market share is so limited. We're still paying for the building lull after 2008, so the real culprit in the housing shortage is underbuilding. And as we know, inventory shortages drive up prices. That's an interesting point about technology and home use. And I have never heard the "list-less" saying before but that's funny! Thanks for reading and commenting, Jacki!

Ooh, you're in Maine. Beautiful state. Congrats to you and your buyers on the 2 BR house sale! That's the price of a car here. My series Part II details those hurdles for Boomers and all the other modern-day generations, as well. Very few roads to housing are easy-peasy.  Enjoy your wide-open spaces, you lucky guy! If I ever want a little home in ME, I know who to call! 

That's both a manageable size and a no-steps solution to aging in place. Smart buy!  I love "rancher" homes. Single level living is so easy!