Truework survey of Americans who've purchased a home in past 24 months reveals generational divide in home buying confidence and financial stress

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A new survey of 1,000 recent U.S. homebuyers reveals a concerning trend: younger buyers are making risky financial bets on their ability to refinance in the future, with nearly two-thirds of Gen Z (64%) and Millennial buyers (65%) saying it's important to their financial health to be able to refinance their mortgage – double the rate of Baby Boomer recent buyers at just 32%.

And, according to the Truework 2025 Recent Homebuyer Report, which surveyed Americans who purchased homes in the past 18-24 months, it's not just the younger crowd who is banking on a future drop in interest rates. In fact, more than half (56%) of all recent buyers said that refinancing to a lower rate is important or extremely important to their financial health, and 1 in 4 (25%)  said the ability to refinance is "extremely important" to their economic well-being.

Overall, the Truework study exposes a generational divide in both confidence and financial stress during the homebuying process, with younger buyers facing specific challenges in comparison to older buyers in today's high-rate environment. Specifically: 

• One in three Millennial and Gen Z buyers (33% each) experienced "significant stress" during the buying process, compared to just 22% of Boomers
• 27% of Gen Z buyers feel pessimistic about their financial future after buying, significantly higher than the overall average of 16%
• 15% of Millennial buyers in particular admit they are "not confident at all" in understanding the financial terms of their mortgages – higher than even the youngest Gen Z buyers at 11%, and much higher than Gen X or Boomer buyers (8% each)
• 19% of Gen Z buyers felt financially insecure when purchasing their homes – more than double the percentage of Boomer buyers (8% said they felt financially insecure) and slightly higher than Millennials and Gen X (16% each)
• 37% of Gen Z and 32% of Millennial first-time buyers found the experience "more difficult than expected," compared to only 19% of Gen X buyers and 7% of Boomers

"These findings reveal a generation of homebuyers who are taking significant financial risks in today's market," said Ethan Winchell, Co-founder and President of Truework, a leading provider of employment and income verification solutions for the mortgage industry. "While homeownership remains a priority, younger buyers are betting their financial future on the hope that interest rates will drop significantly enough to make refinancing viable."

Truework Co-founder and CTO Victor Kabdebon added: "Today's homebuyers are increasingly desperate for a return to lower interest rates, with many who have recently purchased a home hanging their hopes on future refinancing to lower their monthly payments, which could be a very risky move if this doesn't happen – and most analysts predict it will not anytime soon. And those who are looking to buy today who we spoke with voiced frustration with how high rates have limited the homes they can afford to consider."

Stress Levels, Surprises and Financial Hurdles for Homebuyers of All Ages
Truework's survey also spotlighted more general trends across today's homebuyers of all ages, particularly related to stress, surprises and financial challenges in the process. For example: 

• 90% of recent homebuyers reported experiencing stress in the home purchase process – and 30% reported "Significant Stress". West Coast buyers experienced the highest stress levels, with 37% reporting "significant stress," compared to 27% of recent buyers in the South
• The top-ranked sources of this stress for buyers was a tie between "Navigating lengthy paperwork and documentation" and "Limited inventory in desired neighborhoods"
• The number-one financial challenge for recent homebuyers was "Budgeting for unexpected expenses and repairs," followed by "Gathering income and employment information and asset documentation"

Homeowner Optimism Prevails 
Given the current interest rates and limited inventory in many areas, Truework looked at what was driving people to take the plunge into homebuying anyway in today's market. The top two driving factors across all generations, regions and marital status were "Necessity for my life and/or family" at 32% and a realization that "Prices don't seem to be dropping and might actually go up" at 21%.

Despite concerns and stress factors, today's recent homebuyers still maintain a positive outlook, with 86% saying they felt financially secure when purchasing their home. And 82% said they feel "optimistic" or "very optimistic" about their financial future after buying their home.

"It's interesting that homebuyers in today's market not only feel optimistic about their financial future, but also financially secure – even though this financial picture seems to be reliant on an anticipated drop in interest rates," noted Winchell. "However, necessity and a realization that prices are not dropping seem to be continuing to push people into pursuing the American dream of homeownership at any cost."

For a report including more detailed findings (including regional break-outs and variations by age group) and the methodology behind the Truework 2025 Recent Homebuyer Study, please visit our website.

About Truework
Truework is the leading platform that solves income and employment verification pain points for mortgage lenders and property management companies. Powered by automation and machine learning, Truework removes the complexities of managing multiple verification vendors in-house by replacing traditional and manual efforts and delivering comprehensive, vetted, and accurate verification reports. Truework's solution delivers a 75% completion rate on borrower data, helping leading mortgage companies achieve up to 50% cost savings on their verifications process. To learn more, visit truework.com.

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