The combined value of homes gained $2.5 trillion in 2024 to reach $49.7 trillion, according to a new report from Redfin. The total value of the housing market grew 5.2 percent year-over-year. That was the slowest growth in a calendar year since 2019 and the second-slowest since 2011.
“There are more homes for sale right now than in recent years and that has led to buyer’s markets in many areas of the country. That’s good news, but it doesn’t mean homes are getting cheaper—prices continue to tick up each month,” Redfin Economics Research Lead Chen Zhao said in a release. “We expect prices—and therefore home values—to keep rising steadily this year because there are still enough buyers competing over a relatively small number of listings, compared to before the pandemic.”
The total value of homes has more than doubled over the past decade, from $23 trillion in 2014, according to Redfin.
The combined value of homes peaked at $50.4 trillion in July. The drop to $49.7 trillion is reflective of seasonal sales trends, according to Redfin, with overall home values rising during the peak buying seasons between March and September and falling during the winter months when fewer properties are sold.
New construction helped underpin the overall increase in market valuation.
Major New York metros gained most value
Major metros in the Northeast gained the most value in percentage terms in 2024, led by Albany and Rochester in upstate New York. Albany’s aggregate home value rose 11.3 percent to pass the $100 billion mark ($110.7 billion), while Rochester’s total value increased 11.2 percent to $124.3 billion.
The rising value can be attributed to a shortage of homes for sale in the region, which is driving prices up, according to Redfin. Out of all major metros, Rochester had the lowest number of months of for-sale supply, while Albany had the eighth lowest.
The value of properties in Newark, N.J. rose 11.1 percent to $410.8 billion, while another upstate New York metro, Buffalo, climbed 11 percent to $107.8 billion. Hartford, Conn. (up 10.6 percent to $140 billion) rounded out the five metros with the highest gains.
Only three metros recorded a fall in total home value, led by Cape Coral, Fla., which dropped 2.9 percent to $199.5 billion. Next came North Port, Fla. (-1.1 percent to $247 billion) and Honolulu (-0.4 percent to $279.8 billion). West Palm Beach, Fla. (+0.3 percent to $471.7 billion) and Tampa, Fla. (+0.8 percent to $537.1 billion) rounded out the five major metros with the slowest growth.
Florida’s housing market faced multiple headwinds in 2024. The pandemic-driven construction boom increased housing supply right as buyer demand slowed due to the relative lack of affordability compared to just a few years ago, according to Redfin. On top of those impacts, natural disasters—including major hurricanes in October—have led to higher insurance costs and increased climate-related concerns for buyers.
There are eight metros where the total value of homes topped $1 trillion, led by New York, which saw values rise 9.4 percent to $2.43 trillion in 2024.
San Diego and Seattle continue to knock on the door of the trillion-dollar club and look set to join the list this year, if home values keep increasing at a similar rate.
Millennials now own more than 20 percent of the market
Millennials now own more than 20 percent of the home market, with their generation’s total home value rising 18.8 percent year-over-year to $9.7 trillion in the third quarter of 2024.
The growth for millennials is due to multiple factors, including being the largest generation by population and having reached an age and financial position where they make up the largest share of the homebuying market, Redfin said.
The millennial generation’s growth is nearly four times faster than that of baby boomers, who saw their total home value grow 5.2 percent to $19.8 trillion. Boomers still own 41.1 percent of the total market, the largest share of any generation.
The value of homes owned by Gen X increased 4.6 percent to $14.1 trillion, while the Silent Generation home values fell 3.7 percent to $4.6 trillion.
Rural home values outpaced those in urban areas and the suburbs for the seventh consecutive year, jumping 6.4 percent year-over-year to $8.1 trillion. The total value of homes in urban areas rose 4.9 percent to $10.6 trillion, while the value of homes in the suburbs increased 5.1 percent to $30.8 trillion.
There are around 59 million homes in the suburbs, compared to 23 million in urban areas and 22 million in rural areas.