Americans aren’t moving like they used to
New data from Redfin shows Americans typically stay in the home they own for 12 years, up almost 100% from 2005
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Homeowners are staying put.
New data from Redfin shows that the median homeowner tenure rose to 12 years in 2025. That’s still lower than the 2020 peak of 13.4 years, but it is the highest it’s been since 2022, after the rate dipped the past few years. And it’s almost a 100% jump from 2005, when the median tenure was just 6.5 years.
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“High mortgage rates and home prices perpetuate a cycle that locks up housing inventory,” Chen Zhao, Redfin’s head of economics research, said.
The report found that California homeowners stay put the longest. In the Los Angeles Metro Area, homeowners have a median homeowner tenure of 20 years. In San Jose, it’s 18.7. In San Francisco, it’s 16.5. And in San Diego, it’s 14.5.
That’s in part, Redfin says, because California tax laws lock people into cheap property taxes, which discourages them from moving and paying newer, higher rates.
It’s also because the state is desperately in need of more homes.
Zhao said long homeowner tenure is tough for first-time owners. “It can keep existing homeowners in place and financially discourage them from moving to a different home or a different neighborhood, which drives prices up even higher for first-timers trying to break into the market,” she explained.
The data also showed that in affordable and growing metro areas, people are on the move. The median tenure is shortest in the Louisville, Kentucky metro area at just 8.3 years, then the Las Vegas metro area, where it’s 8.8 years.
“When home prices are lower, it’s typically easier for homeowners to sell and move on because they’re not taking on an ultra-high mortgage payment on their next house,” Redfin said.