WASHINGTON–The rate of homeownership in the U.S. has fallen again.
The latest Census Homeownership and Vacancy Survey (HVS), reflecting data for the fourth quarter of 2016, shows that by the end of 2016 the rate of homeownership had declined to 63.7%, down just slightly from 2015’s 63.8%, but up from 2016’s third quarter number of 63.5%. Among the reasons cited for the decline is the lack of inventory of starter homes due to the significant debt many Millennials have.
The HVS also shows that new households are still forming, but slowly—just 0.5% year-over-year in the last quarter—but many of those are made up of renters, not owners. In 2016, about 46% of new households were owned, with the rest comprised of renters, according to the HVS. In the fourth quarter of 2016, 87.3% of the housing units in the U.S. were occupied, with 12.7% vacant. Owner-occupied units made up 55.6% of these occupied homes, while renter-occupied units made up 31.7% of the inventory.
The HVS report said it found national vacancy rates in the fourth quarter of 2016 were 6.9% for rentals and 1.8% for homeowner housing, approximately the same as 2015.