Feb 02, 2015

Question of the Day: What Percentage of U.S. Households Own Homes?

Answer:  63.9%

Here’s the graph showing that this is the lowest rate of homeownership in the US for the past 20 years (from Marketplace.org):

fredgraph_0

Questions to ask students while they interpret this data:

  • What led to the dramatic drop in homeownership over the past decade?  Hint:  The Great Recession
  • Why do you think the rates of homeownership haven’t risen since the Great Recession?
    • Until recently, job market has been iffy
    • Banks have tighter lending requirements
  • In the Marketplace.org article, the top picture shows a house sign with the term “Bank Owned.”  What does that mean?  Good opportunity to point out to students this concept of a mortgage and that most people borrow from the bank to own a home.
  • Do they have a long-term goal of owning a home some day?  Why or why not?

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

author image More by Tim right solid arrow
Mail Icon

Subscribe to the blog

Join the more than 12,000 teachers who get the NGPF daily blog delivered to their inbox:

SIGN UP