Arizona Sees Growing Trend of Gen Z Entering the Housing Market

Race Day Live (Mesa, AZ) – Brogan McGuire began looking for his first home when he was only 20 years old, and he purchased one the same year.

“I spent a semester in college, decided it wasn’t the right thing for me,” McGuire said with humor. “I got into sales early, so I had a fairly robust income at 18,19, 20, and set aside a down payment.”

McGuire’s narrative may widen your eyes, but he insists that his real estate path has been one of hard work and opportunity. He also followed the advise of others around him.

“My dad was a Realtor for 28 years, my grandmother — bless her heart — is 41 years still a Realtor in the Valley, so I had a lot of context around homeownership and the wealth-building abilities it would give you.”

The year was 2020, and at the height of the pandemic, mortgage rates dipped below 3%. McGuire said he took the jump, put down 3%, and purchased his first home. Years later, he still thinks it was one of the best moves he ever made.

Of course, mortgage rates in 2025 are more than double what McGuire paid, but this isn’t stopping other members of Generation Z from buying their first homes in Arizona.

Read More – Arizona Single Moms: Get Up to $939 Monthly in SNAP Benefits in January 2025

Homebuilders like Oakwood Homes, which has developments in Surprise and Coolidge, are devising strategies to get them in the door.

“We bought down interest rates [for the home buyer]… in doing so, that monthly payment got to a point where we were able to take many of those Gen Zers that were sitting on the sideline, in fact, we saw…twice as many customers that were Gen Zers from last year to this year have purchased in our communities,” Michael Fraley, president of Oakwood Homes in Arizona, said.

The move reduces the builder’s profit margins, but if they sell enough homes, it is a little expense that they can repay, and then some.

Younger generations, such as Millennials and Generation Z, may be ideal targets for home builders and Realtors trying to close a purchase. Why?

“We’re going to see what may be regarded as one of the largest wealth transfers ever witnessed in the history of the world,” stated financial advisor Marcus Johnson. “The large amount of money these Baby Boomers have transferring to the next generation.”

Trending at Race Day Live – Arizona Man Killed Father of 5 in Parking Lot over Nothing; Said He Did not Know Why He Killed the Man using Screwdriver

Marcus Johnson stated that he commonly receives calls and queries from young people after they get an inheritance, a big financial gift from a parent or grandparent, or are named as a beneficiary on a 401(k). Johnson’s suggestion is this: “Make sure you are positioned in a way to make sure that you are paying off debt, to have an emergency fund, and then as your circumstances allow begin investing to both your retirement and other investment savings.”

Those in the real estate industry seek to persuade the next generation to put that money into their first home.

“There is the transfer of wealth but there’s also generational wealth that comes from what you’re building on your efforts,” Fraley told the audience. “One of the things about home ownership is it’s the biggest transfer of generational wealth.”

Reference