Between stagnant wages and sky-high interest rates, the economic climate is rocky for young people looking to become first-time homeowners without having access to pre-existing wealth.
But having grown up in the gig economy, Gen Z has learned to be resourceful and piece together solutions to every crisis of capital they face. And it appears the homebuyers’ market is no exception.
Young Americans are “house hacking” in order to afford the sizable investment of home ownership.
“House hacking” is simply a new term for a practice that’s been around for decades: Renting out part of your home to bring in extra cash that makes the monthly house note more affordable.
According to a recent survey by homebuyers and sellers website Zillow, over half of all Gen Z and Millennial homebuyers showed interest in house hacking.
The median sale price for houses has risen 3.5% in the past year, and the interest rate on 30-year mortgages has climbed to 8%, the highest interest rate in over two decades, making it necessary for many to find another revenue stream to aid in the massive monthly bill banks are assessing on homeowners with newly-minted mortgages.