Can empty-nesters boost housing affordability?
The "silver tsunami" of aging Americans is often seen as a potential way to alleviate the country's housing affordability woes. However, the data suggests that an influx of empty-nester homes coming on the market won't have much of an impact on the problem—because of a geographical mismatch.
Today on the show, we speak to an economist who's looked into the silver tsunami's impact on the housing market and thinks this theory might be more of a red herring.
This episode was fact checked by Sierra Juarez
Related episodes:
The graying of America
What would it take to fix retirement?
How big is the US housing shortage?
The highs and lows of US rents
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Today on the show, we speak to an economist who's looked into the silver tsunami's impact on the housing market and thinks this theory might be more of a red herring.
This episode was fact checked by Sierra Juarez
Related episodes:
The graying of America
What would it take to fix retirement?
How big is the US housing shortage?
The highs and lows of US rents
For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.
Music by
Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter.
Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices
NPR Privacy Policy