Who Buys More Homes with Mortgage Financing

Demographics

Mortgage Markets

Origination Trends

Grouped bar chart, 2025, of home-purchase mortgages with one applicant by applicant age. Men applicants in blue outnumber women applicants in gold in every age band under 65. Under 25, men get 2.7 times as many loans as women. Women applicants lead at 65-74 and 75 and older. Source: Polygon Research, HMDAVision.

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Data Points

Do men or women buy more homes with a mortgage?

Yes, men applicants, at every age under 65. From 65, women applicants lead, at about 52% of loans with one applicant. The youngest Gen Z buyers, under 25, are the most lopsided: men get 2.7 times as many (HMDA, 2025).

Date Published:

October 9, 2026

Date Updated:

October 9, 2026

Chart type:

Bar Chart

Suggested Citation:

Polygon Research, "Who Buys More Homes with Mortgage Financing, Men or Women? The Youngest Gen Z Buyers Are the Most Lopsided," HMDAVision, published October 9, 2026. Scope: 2025 HMDA originations. Filters: Applicants: 1; Action Type: Originations; Business or Commercial Purpose: Not for Business Purpose; Units: 1, 2, 3, 4; Loan Purpose: Purchase; Sex of Applicant: Male, Female. Gen Z shown as applicants under 25; Gen Z ages 25 to 28 fall in the 25-34 band, which HMDA does not split. Loans with no age reported excluded. Mortgage-financed purchases only; cash purchases are not in HMDA. Metrics: loan count by applicant age band. Accessed October 9, 2026.

Key insights

Mortgage-financed home purchases by applicants under 25, the youngest Gen Z buyers, went 2.7 to 1 to men in 2025. Gen Z buyers aged 25 to 28 sit in the 25-34 band, where the ratio is 2.0 to 1. Men applicants outnumber women applicants in every age band under 65. From 65, women applicants lead, at about 52% of loans with one applicant.

Under 25, loans to men applicants rose 8.5% in 2025 while loans to women applicants fell 1.8%. Among applicants 55 and older, loans to both groups grew, fastest at 75 and older.

For a lender, the market splits by age: the youngest buyers skew male, and buyers in their sixties and seventies skew female, where women applicants pass men applicants at 65-74 by about 3,500 loans. These are mortgage originations. Cash purchases are not in HMDA and are not counted.

HMDAVision breaks this out by county, MSA, census tract and lender, so a lender can compare its own mix by applicant age and sex with the market, a peer group or a specific competitor. Explore purchase lending in HMDAVision.

From Analysis to Action

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