Today’s real estate market is a challenging one for buyers. While home prices have relaxed since their peak in the COVID-19 pandemic, the typical cost of a home in the U.S. has risen by more than 33% over the last three years. Mortgage rates today are at their highest levels in more than two decades. The impacts of high rent and inflation have made it harder for many would-be buyers to save up for home purchases.
Underlying all of these conditions is the simple fact that America has been slow to add new homes to its housing supply. A recent study estimated that the U.S. is short between 2.3 and 6.5 million housing units relative to the needs of the current population. One of the primary reasons is that many construction firms downsized or went out of business entirely during the Great Recession, leading to a long stretch of underbuilding.
The Age of America’s Housing Stock
The median age of U.S. homes has increased steadily over the past several decades
Source: Construction Coverage analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data | Image Credit: Construction Coverage
And with fewer new homes coming onto the market, many buyers are increasingly competing for older homes. Over the last two decades, the median age of a home in the U.S. has increased by more than 10 years, from 30 years in 2000 to 41 today.
Older homes do have some advantages for buyers. For one, they are often less expensive to purchase, making them more accessible for lower- or middle-income buyers. Old homes may also have more character, with design features and amenities that reflect the time at which they were built. And as the saying goes, “they don’t build them like they used to.” In many cases, surviving older homes demonstrate higher quality craftsmanship or the use of long-lasting materials like old-growth lumber.
Housing Age & Quality
Older homes require more upkeep to maintain adequate living conditions
Source: Construction Coverage analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data | Image Credit: Construction Coverage
The downside of older homes, of course, is that aging homes often come with additional costs for maintenance and repairs. According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, both the likelihood that a home is in inadequate condition and the typical costs of routine maintenance increase with age. Of U.S. homes built before 1940, 9% are considered to be in inadequate condition, as opposed to just 1.3% of homes built since 2020. Meanwhile, the average maintenance costs for a new home are less than a quarter of the costs for a home built before 1940.
Median Home Age by State
Six neighboring states report having the oldest housing in the nation
Source: Construction Coverage analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data | Image Credit: Construction Coverage
However, the aging of the U.S. housing stock varies across geographies. Areas that have grown quickly in recent decades, including Sun Belt states like Nevada and Arizona, have the lowest median home ages. On the other hand, states in the Northeast and Midwest tend to have the oldest supply, led by New York with a median home age of 63 years. At the state and local levels, many of the locations with the oldest homes used to be heavily populated, denser areas but have had stagnant or declining populations in recent years. With fewer people moving in and more limited space for new construction, these places have found it difficult to add new housing inventory.
Below is a complete breakdown of every metropolitan area in the U.S. and all 50 states. The study was conducted by Construction Coverage, a website that provides construction insurance guides, using data from the U.S. Census Bureau. For more information, refer to the methodology.
Large Metros With the Oldest Homes
Midsize Metros With the Oldest Homes
Small Metros With the Oldest Homes
States With the Oldest Homes
Methodology
Photo Credit: Christian Hinkle / Shutterstock
The data used in this analysis is from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates. To determine the locations with the oldest homes, researchers calculated the median age of residential housing units based on the year each unit was built. In the event of a tie, the location with the smaller percentage of homes built since 2010 was ranked higher. To improve relevance, metropolitan statistical areas were grouped into cohorts based on population size: small (less than 350,000), midsize (350,000–999,999), and large (1,000,000 or more).
For complete results, see American Cities With the Oldest Homes on Construction Coverage.
