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The National Association of Realtors released its 2025 profile of homebuyers and sellers, which showed a split between equity-rich buyers gaining ground and first-time buyers hitting new lows.

According to the report released Nov. 4, first-time homebuyers made up just 21% of transactions between July 2024 and June 2025, the lowest share since NAR began tracking in 1981.

“The historically low share of first-time buyers underscores the real-world consequences of a housing market starved for affordable inventory,” said Jessica Lautz, NAR deputy chief economist and vice president of research in the report. 

In the 1980s, the typical first-time homebuyer was in their late 20s, according to the report.

The median age of first-time buyers today is 40, due to qualified buyers facing higher rents, limited inventory and difficulties saving for down payments. 

“A lot of first time buyers are holding back. A lot of it’s because of fear, fear of the unknown and fear of the future, said Don Scordino, a broker with Realty Concepts in Fresno.

All-cash purchases also reached a record-high of 26%, driven largely by repeat buyers. Nearly 33% of repeat buyers used all cash purchases, something that Scordino is seeing in Fresno.

“Usually an all cash buyer has more confidence than somebody who’s a first-time buyer, and then they’re more likely to buy than that first-time buyer,” he said.

The report also highlighted that down payments continued to climb. The median down payment amount across all buyers reached 19%, with first-time buyers putting down 10% and repeat buyers 23% — the highest levels in decades.

The report also shows buyers and sellers trending older, fewer people with children purchasing homes and a modest uptick in new-home sales as builders use incentives to attract buyers.