The share of first-time homebuyers paying all cash has climbed to record levels, fueled by generational wealth transfers, even as eroding affordability continues to push homeownership out of reach for many Americans.
Between July 2025 and June 2026, 10% of rookie home shoppers paid all cash instead of relying on financing, marking the largest percentage on record, according to the annual Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers released Thursday by the National Association of Realtors®.
The data also reveals that all-cash buyers were roughly three times likelier than financed first-time buyers to have used an inheritance (28% vs. 9%).
Across all first-time buyers—cash or financed—10% used an inheritance toward their home purchase, marking a new record and the fourth straight annual increase.
“The housing market is beginning to see a generational transfer of wealth. It’s not yet a tsunami, but it is changing who can buy a first home and when,” says Jessica Lautz, NAR deputy chief economist and vice president of research. “Because people are living longer, the generation receiving that wealth is
no longer young adults. Many are reaching middle age before they can buy their first home.”
In fact, while the median age of first-time buyers held steady at a record high of 40, cash buyers skewed older, with the median age reaching 54 years old, compared to 38 for those who used financing.
Echoing Lautz, Realtor.com® senior economist Hannah Jones confirms that the transfer of wealth from one generation to the next is starting to show up in the housing market, though the full effect won’t likely be felt for a few more years.
Older homeowners hold substantial equity, and repeat buyers, with a median age of 62—matching a record high set last year— paid all cash 30% of the time in 2026. Jones says that for some rookie buyers, that wealth arrives as an inheritance.
“Buyers with access to inherited wealth have a significant advantage when they can purchase without financing,” Anthony Mian, an agent with Douglas Elliman Beverly Hills, tells Realtor.com. “In multiple-offer situations, sellers often favor all-cash offers because they eliminate financing risk, reduce the likelihood of delays, and provide greater certainty of closing.”
The bank of mom and dad
Other avenues open to Baby Boomers wishing to boost their children’s or grandchildren’s purchasing power include cash gifted towards a down payment, co-signing a loan, or selling investment properties, says Emilee Warner, a real estate agent at MW Real Estate Co. in Nashville.
Looking at the top sources for a down payment among first-time buyers, personal savings continued to dominate (62%), followed by financial assets, such as 401(k), stocks, or cryptocurrency (30%), and gifts or loans from family and friends (25%).
“Wealth, whether built up or inherited, is increasingly what gets some buyers in, while buyers who depend on a mortgage still face high rates and prices,” notes Jones.
Warner says she recently worked with first-time buyers who paid all cash borrowed the “bank” of mom and dad to purchase a home with a price tag exceeding $1 million.
“The cash buyers out there want to get in a home prior to rates dropping,” Warner tells Realtor.com. “They are serious, willing, and able buyers. Cash allows appraisals to be waived, removing the risk of a low appraisal that could lose a financed buyer the home.”
While more than half of repeat buyers (57%) relied on proceeds from the sale of their previous home and 42% used savings for their down payment, harnessing generational wealth among this cohort is not unheard of, with 4% using inheritance or a gift from a family member or friend to fund their next home purchase.
Brandon Winn, an agent at Iowa Realty in Des Moines, IA, says he recently worked with move-up buyers who were purchasing a home with the help of their parents who offered them a 3% loan.
“This was when interest rates were 6.5%, and they gave them a 3% loan so they could afford to buy the home that they wanted,” Winn tells Realtor.com.
Winn adds that at the luxury tier of the Des Moines market topping $600,000, he is seeing a growing number of buyers paying all cash using either inheritance or investment funds.
“Interest rates have risen so quickly that it’s priced a lot of buyers out of the market,” says the agent. “So if you have the cash…it gives you the opportunity to purchase the house without having a [mortgage] payment, and then, of course, you’re going to build equity quite a bit faster.”
Mian, in Beverly Hills, says that for young families, that additional disposable income can go toward childcare, education, savings, or investments. Access to generational wealth can even expand their housing search geographically.
“In a market as expensive as Los Angeles, this can influence not only who can afford to purchase a home, but also which neighborhoods they can access and how much financial flexibility they retain after purchasing,” he says. “Ultimately, generational wealth is becoming an important factor in determining both housing opportunities and long-term financial security.”
Rookies vs. Repeat Buyers
Affordability continues to be the biggest major hurdle for aspiring U.S. homeowners.
The share of first-time buyers ticked up to 22% from last year’s all-time low of 21%, yet it is still roughly half the historical norm of 40% recorded before 2008. Jones attributes the modest year-over-year boost to mortgage rate declines in the beginning of 2026.
Rates briefly dipped below 6% in February, before the outbreak of the Iran war, and were below year-ago levels from Oct. 2025 through July 2026.
“This presented a window of opportunity for first-time buyers relying on a mortgage. The vast majority of first-time buyers financed their purchase, which means the median first-time buyer age is closer to the financed first-time buyer age,” says Jones. “All-cash first-time buyers have aged 10 years in a decade, versus six for financed buyers, which shows they are a different group, middle-aged and drawing on savings, investments or inheritance.”
Examining the makeup of first-time buyers in 2026, NAR data shows the share of first-time buyers who were married couples decreased slightly to 47%. Single women accounted for a quarter of all first-time buyers, same as in 2025, while the share of single men climbed to 12%, the highest level since 2011.
Who Is Selling in 2026?
The typical novice buyer in 2026 had a median household income of $100,000, up from last year’s $94,400.
The median down payment among first-time buyers this year was 9%, down from 10% in 2025 and significantly below the 18% recorded among all buyers.
As in years past, equity-rich repeat buyers continued to dominate the market, accounting for 78% of all home purchases with a median household income of $127,000 and a typical down payment of 19%— more than double that of first-timers. Nearly a thirs (30%) paid all cash.
“Repeat buyers are driving the housing market,” says Lautz. “Unlike first-time home buyers, repeat buyers have seen their housing equity grow rapidly over the past decade, enabling them to trade up for larger homes or move into more desirable locations. These are often moves by choice rather than necessity.”
The typical home seller in 2026 has owned their property for 12 years, a new all-time high surpassing last year’s 11-year tenure. Forty-seven percent of sellers went on to purchase a newer home, and 36% bought a larger home.
Of all homes sold on the market, 78% did not have children under the age of 18 residing in the home, down from 81% last year.
For all sellers, the most commonly cited reason for selling their home was the desire to move closer to friends and family (22%), followed by the home being too small (12%), the home being too large (10%), a change in family situation (8%) and moving due to retirement (8%).
For recently sold homes, the final sales price was a median of 99% of the final listing price.
