Approximately 61.5% of homeowners had a mortgage on the home they owned, according to recent data from the United States Census Bureau. This means that roughly 38.5% of homeowners were living mortgage-free during the five-year period the data was collected.

A range of different factors have influenced homeownership and mortgage lending over the last few years, including changes in 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:interest rates and broader economic trends. Learn more about why many ✃homeowners have a mortgage, in addition to the p🅘ros and cons of home loans.

Statistics on Homeownership and Mor🌃tgag🍷es as of 2024

Almost two-thirds of homeowners (61.5%) had a mortgage, compared to 38.5% of homeowners who were mortgage-free, according to recent U.S. Census Bureau data. This information is based on five-year averages from 2017 to 2022. Over that five-year period, there were 81,497,760 homes available nationally, with 50,148,459 having a mortgage.

A total of 43,837,871 homes had only a 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:primary mortgage without a second mortgage or a home equity loan over the previously referenced timeline. There were also 5,417,896 homes with multiple mortgages, and 31,349,301 homes without a mortgage at all.

Comparison With Previous Decades

The chart below shows overall changes in the percentage of homes that were owner-occupied from 1990 to 2024. As you can see, homeownership levels have remained relatively steady over the last few decades, with the highest levels of homeownership taking pla💧ce in 2005. 

The table below shows the percentage of 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:homes without a mortgage compared to the total number of available homes on record from 2010 to 2022. These figures show that the percentage of mortgage-free ꧒homes has increased steadily, from 32.78% in 2010 to 39.28% in 2022.

There are several factors that may be contributing to this phenomenon, some of which have to do with changing demographics. For example, a 2024 report from RedFin showed that 54% of baby boomers (typically considered those born between 1946 and 1964) owned their homes outright, and that 78% plan to stay in their homes as they age.

The Bottom Line

Nearly 40% of homes were owned outright in the U.S. between 2017 to 2022. Older people who want to keep costs down as they age can benefit from not having a mortgage, as can younger individuals and fa𒅌milies who want to live frugally while setting aside more funds for other savings and investments.

If you have a mortgage and you hope to pay the balance down to $0, keep in mind it will take time to reach your goal. Consider making extra payments toward the principal of your home loan to pay the mortgage down faster. You can pay extra each month, set up a bi-weekly payment plan, or make additional lump-sum payments each year. You could also refinance your mortgage to secure a shorter repayment term, but typically you should only do so if you can 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:qualify for a lower mortgage rate.