Even as older Millennials approach their 40s, a new study indicates that Millennials are moving more often than previous generations.
According to real estate website Zillow, 45 percent of people aged between 23 to 35 reported having lived in their homes for less than two years in 2017. In 1960, only 33 percent of young people reported having lived in their homes for less than two years.
Perhaps the biggest reason for Millennials' penchant for moving is their lack of homeownership. According to a study by think tank Urban Institute, 37 percent of Millennials aged between 25 and 34 currently own a home. That's compared to about 45 percent of both Baby Boomers and Gen Xers owned a home when they were that age.
Why don't Millennials own their own homes? While many more young people are going to college than their predecessors, they're paying much more,
leaving them in debt upon graduation.
Zillow also reports that rents have gone up across the country, meaning it takes Millennials longer to save up for a house.
Millennials
Zillow also notes that young people tend to live in large cities, where property markets are inelastic. In addition, there's been
a decrease in the amount of new homes built in America
in the past decade, causing the price of homes to increase still.
Millennials also tend to change jobs more often than Baby Boomers or Gen Xers. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an average Millennial has been with their current employer for less than three years, compared with an average of 10 years for people 55 and older. Job changes often mean a move to a new city, keeping Millennials on the move.
But where are young people moving? According to Zillow, Boston, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia have seen the greatest increase in young adults moving to town, while Las Vegas, Riverside, California and Orlando have seen more young people move out.
Alex Hider is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @alexhider.
