Home ownership rate steady, yet down from 2005 high

The national home ownership rate has held mostly steady this year, standing at 65.5 percent for the second quarter, according to recent U.S. Census Bureau data.

The rate is 0.4 percentage points lower than the second quarter of 2011, but 0.1 higher than the first quarter of this year.

The home ownership rate has steadily fallen over the past few years since peaking in the first quarter of 2005 at 69.1 percent.

Home ownership rates are highest in the Midwest at 69.6 percent whereas home ownership rates are the lowest in the West, at 59.7 percent, according to the Census data.

Here’s a closer look at the home ownership rate among different demographics, according to the second quarter U.S. Census Bureau housing data:

• The home ownership rate is highest at 81.6 percent for those ages 65 years and over.
• The home ownership rate is lowest at 36.5 percent for those who are under 35 years of age.
• Non-Hispanic whites have the highest home ownership rates among the races at 73.5 percent, while the Hispanic home ownership rate was 46.5 percent and 43.8 percent for African Americans in the second quarter.