Older Americans are expected to pass down trillions in housing wealth, but new data shows that the rising costs of homeownership may be threatening that inheritance.
Homeowners aged 65 and older had the highest cost-burden rate of any age group in 2024, with 28% spending more than 30% of their income on housing and utilities, according to the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies’ State of the Nation’s Housing 2026 report.
It’s the hidden tension behind the roughly $19 trillion in equity held by baby boomers alone: A home can be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars even while its owner lacks the income needed to keep up with the bills that come with holding it.