HousingWireHousingWire
While the share of first-time homebuyers has declined across the country, Black homebuyers are bucking the trend and showing resilience in an increasingly difficult housing market.
A recent Zillow survey found that 62% of all Black homebuyers in 2024 were first-timers, the same level as the previous year. In contrast, first-time buyers accounted for only 44% of the market, down from 50% in 2023.
The rise comes after years of fluctuation. In 2019, 47% of Black homebuyers were purchasing for the first time, a figure that plunged to 35% in 2021 after the COVID-19 pandemic. The share rebounded to 55% in 2022 and reached a record 63% in 2023, outpacing other racial groups and the broader housing market.
“Despite affordability challenges, Black first-time home buyers are demonstrating a strong commitment to homeownership, a key driver of generational wealth,” Zillow senior economist Orphe Divounguy said in a statement.
“While income disparities and saving difficulties continue to delay home buying for Black households, programs like down payment assistance, first-time buyer tax credits and flexible lending options have helped increase access.”
While more Black Americans are becoming homeowners, affordability remains a significant hurdle. Home prices have continued to rise in many metropolitan areas, and strict zoning laws in some regions further limit the availability of affordable homes. These factors disproportionately impact lower-income households and Black buyers in particular, Zillow said.
A critical measure of affordability is the percentage of income spent on housing costs. Black households earn a median income of $54,896. This significantly below the $95,213 needed to purchase the typical U.S. home in 2024 without being cost-burdened — i.e., spending more than 30% of income on housing.
As a result, only 17.6% of listings are affordable for a typical Black household, compared to 28.2% for Hispanic, 37.9% for white and 56.8% for Asian households.
Certain cities remain more accessible for Black homebuyers.
St. Louis ranks as the most affordable market for typical Black households, with 30.3% of listings within reach. Birmingham, Alabama (29.5%) and Memphis, Tennessee (29.0%) follow closely behind.
Other affordable cities, according to Zillow, include Detroit (28.6%), Baltimore (25.8%), Pittsburgh (23.7%), Cleveland (22.8%), Indianapolis (22%), Atlanta (19.2%) and Oklahoma City (18.8%).
Conversely, some of the least affordable housing markets for Black buyers are on the West Coast, particularly in California and Seattle, where home prices have surged beyond reach for many median-income households.
Zillow data also points to the rise of remote work, which is providing some Black renters with new opportunities to become homeowners by allowing them to relocate to more affordable regions.
Zillow research indicates that Black renters are 29% more likely than others to be in a position where remote work could make homeownership possible. But even with increased flexibility, high housing costs remain a barrier.
The decline in affordable listings for Black households has been steeper than for other racial groups. Still, despite these obstacles, the Black homeownership rate increased more between 2019 and 2024 than the rate for whites, and only Hispanic households experienced a higher rate of growth, Zillow reported.
