RealEstateEconomyWatch.com

Americans in their thirties have seen their homeownership rates decline more over the past decade than either younger or older owners.

Homeownership rates for the nation as a whole fell from a high of 69 percent in 2007 to 66 percent today. (Each percentage point represents 1.4 million households). Among Americans under 25, homeownership actually increased slightly, from 21.9 in 2000 to 23.5 percent in 2011, and homeownership among those over 65 also increased, from 80.3 percent to 81.1 percent over the 11 year period, according to a recent analysis by economists at the National Association of Realtors.

Forty-somethings and those in their late twenties lost about four percentage points in their homeownership rates.

However, those in their thirties have lost about seven percentage points from the peak in 2005 to 2011. Those ages 35 to 39 saw their homeownership rate fall from a peak of 66.6 percent in 2005 to 59.4 percent in 2011; for those 30 to 35, homeownership declined from a peak of 56.8 percent to 49.9 percent last year.

“It is also this group where there is potential for re-entering into the homeownership market in the near future,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun.