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10 Cities Where Baby Boomers Are Buying the Most Homes

October 6, 2024

 

4 min Read

Written byJohn Csiszar

Edited byJenna Klaverweiden

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Baby boomers are defined as those born between 1946 and 1964. This means the boomers who aren’t already retired are likely right on the cusp. Whether looking to retire in a dream destination, wanting to be closer to family or simply looking for a more affordable place to live, boomers are motivated to snap up the right properties.

But where exactly are boomers shopping around, and what does it mean for housing markets in those areas? To analyze these questions, SmartAsset looked at 2023 housing data in 40 of the largest U.S. metro areas. As part of the analysis, property values, median interest rates and boomer incomes were considered.

Here’s a closer look at these housing markets and the top 10 cities where boomers are buying the most homes.

Also see the best and worst states for boomers to buy a home.

Boomers Are Largely Looking To the South and Midwest

By and large, median home prices of boomer purchases in the most popular areas for boomers were fairly close to the national average, perhaps suggesting that boomers’ top priority is affordability. This may be the reason San Francisco, a notoriously overpriced real estate market, was the least preferred by baby boomers, according to the SmartAsset analysis.

On the other hand, Raleigh-Cary, North Carolina, with its $445,000 median property value of boomer purchases, was the most favored. It was also the city among the top 10 with the lowest average mortgage rate paid by boomers — tied with Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, Arizona, and Jacksonville, Florida — at just 6.75%.

The most expensive median home value of boomer purchases in the top 10 cities was $475,000 in the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler area, while the Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson area of Indiana posted the lowest median value of boomer purchases at just $305,000.

Overall, the study revealed that the South and the Midwest are the overwhelming choices for boomers buying homes for their retirement, including three metro areas in Florida. Ohio and Indiana each had one metro area in the top 10 cities.

The only outlier was the Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler area of Arizona, in the American Southwest. This metro area also had the highest number of mortgages issued to baby boomers at 27,745, but that’s likely due to the fact that it ranks as the 10th most populous metro area in the country.

For those of you who are boomers wondering where to head in retirement, take a look at these top 10 metro areas where boomers are heading.          

Raleigh-Cary, North Carolina

• Portion of local boomers who bought a home: 2.76%
• Number of mortgages issued to boomers: 8,215
• Median property value of boomer purchases: $445,000

Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, Tennessee

• Portion of local boomers who bought a home: 2.66%
• Number of mortgages issued to boomers: 11,410
• Median property value of boomer purchases: $465,000

Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, Arizona

• Portion of local boomers who bought a home: 2.64%
• Number of mortgages issued to boomers: 27,745
• Median property value of boomer purchases: $475,000

Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, Indiana

• Portion of local boomers who bought a home: 2.63% 
• Number of mortgages issued to boomers: 11,891
• Median property value of boomer purchases: $305,000