A prominent celebrity real estate broker has delivered a stark warning to young Americans struggling to enter the property market, urging Millennials and Generation Z to radically shift their expectations on affordability.
A New Baseline for Home Ownership
Ryan Serhant, founder and CEO of his eponymous brokerage and a familiar face on television, stated that pining for the housing prices of previous decades is a futile exercise. The broker, who boasts 2.7 million Instagram followers and deals in multi-million dollar Manhattan luxury properties, insisted that young buyers must accept the current economic climate as their starting point.
"You have to understand that your baseline starts right now," Serhant told Fox Business. "We are not going back anywhere. We're not going back to the rates and the market we had in 2021. We're not going back to 2015. We're also not going back to 1991."
The Grim Statistics Facing a Generation
Serhant's comments highlight a profound generational pessimism, underscored by alarming data. A Coldwell Banker study reported by Fortune found that a staggering 84% of Gen Z are postponing major life events like marriage, having children, and career changes to save for a home.
Further research from Clever Real Estate paints an even bleaker picture: approximately 79% of Gen Z already believe homeownership is financially out of reach. Nearly 30% of respondents have considered extreme measures like squatting or living in their vehicles. For many, the dream seems so distant that one in five young adults aged 18-28 believe the outbreak of World War III is more likely than them buying a house within five years.
"The old baseline of affordability where the median-income buyer could reasonably plan to own a house, I think, is gone for most of the country," Serhant concluded.
An Older Market and the 'Bank of Mum and Dad'
The demographic shift in buying power is dramatic. The National Association of Realtors recently recorded the median age of first-time buyers hitting a historic high of 40. Serhant observes this trend firsthand, noting his largest client base is now baby boomers, often purchasing properties for their adult children.
"The biggest buyer base we have today are not Millennials. It's not Gen Z. It's boomers buying for Millennials and Gen Z," he explained. This dynamic inflates the median buyer age and means many younger people live in homes owned by their parents. A study from Intuit Credit Karma supports this, finding 44% of Gen Z prospective buyers expect financial help from their parents.
The affordability gap is stark. The National Association of Home Builders calculates a required annual income of $141,000 to afford a median-priced home, while the national average salary sits at roughly half that figure.
Reframing the Dream and Finding Hope
Despite the daunting landscape, Serhant, a father who worries about his own daughter's future prospects, advises a mental reset. He suggests redefining personal success beyond traditional homeownership metrics.
"It is much better to own than it is to rent, but you don't have to. I think the American dream is a happy life defined by growth and success in whichever way you determine your success," he said.
Economists point to potential pathways. Redfin's chief economist, Daryl Fairweather, highlighted that cities promoting denser housing—like townhomes and condos—will be more accessible to younger buyers. Locations such as San Antonio, Texas, offer relative affordability and remote work opportunities. "More starter homes being built will give Gen Z an easier way to get onto the housing ladder," Fairweather noted.
Ultimately, the message from industry experts is clear: the property ladder hasn't disappeared, but its first rung is now much higher, demanding new strategies and recalibrated dreams from the next generation of buyers.
