Soaring Housing Prices Fuel Rise in Co-Buying Among Single Friends, as Younger Generations Struggle with Affordability

The escalating housing market, marked by a 56% increase in home prices since February 2020 according to National Association of Realtors data, is prompting creative solutions among prospective buyers. One such solution gaining traction is co-buying, as highlighted in NPR’s ongoing series “Cost of Living: The Price We Pay.”

The scarcity of homes for sale is due to multiple factors, including a delay in home construction, rising building costs, and high mortgage rates deterring current homeowners from moving. This scarcity has led many buyers to pool their resources, with several housing industry reports indicating that about 15% of homebuyers in 2024 bought homes with a friend or relative.

Daryl Fairweather, chief economist at Redfin, has noticed this trend from anecdotal evidence provided by the company’s agents. “We’ve heard of more buyers having to team up to afford a home,” she says, attributing this to worsening affordability over time.

In an era of soaring prices, co-buying offers a viable solution. Home prices have risen more than 50% since 2020, making it challenging for the median household to purchase a typical home without a significant income increase or substantial savings. In some regions, such as California, the median earner would need a six-figure salary raise to afford a typical home.

This economic reality has hit Hayley Currier and Tammy Kremer hard, as they searched for a home in California. Both women are in their late 30s, friends who bonded over shared passions for open-water swimming, Jewish rituals, and political organizing. They have been living together for the past nine months in a rental in Berkeley, Calif., along with one other roommate.

Their shared home provides Currier a “beautiful community and feeling of connection and home.” However, the high cost of housing has also confirmed that they would live well together long-term. They started searching for a place to buy together in March.

Co-buying with a friend offers several advantages, particularly in regions with a scarcity of homes. It allows buyers to combine income and assets, easing the financial burden. If more duplexes or triplexes were available, co-buying might not be necessary. However, since single-family homes tend to dominate the market in many areas, co-buying provides a practical solution for those seeking affordable housing options.

When Currier’s mother first learned about her daughter’s co-buying plans, she was apprehensive. “It’s not something my generation did,” she said. However, surveys show that younger generations are more likely to co-buy. Millennial homeowners were more likely to have purchased a home with one or more friends than Gen X or baby boomer homeowners.

Co-buying is not without its risks, and experts advise drawing up a detailed agreement to address potential issues. Currier and Kremer have taken this advice seriously, discussing and addressing multiple scenarios before making an offer on a property.

Their co-buying journey is far from over. After a summer of bids and setbacks, they finally had cause for celebration by September, with their offer on another property—two units on one lot, with a shared yard—accepted. They now plan to turn their design idea into reality: stringing tin cans between their units to communicate easily.