New mortgage rule could change how Americans buy homes

America’s housing market is undergoing a structural shift, one that goes beyond interest rates and inventory shortages.

The way buyers qualify for homes, and what counts as usable wealth, is starting to change.

Data published by Redfin on March 26 underline the strain. Pending home sales have slipped, mortgage rates have climbed above 6.5%, and economic uncertainty tied to the Middle East conflict is keeping buyers on edge.

At the centre of that shift is a growing mismatch between traditional financial systems and how younger generations build and store value.

As affordability pressures mount, the gap is forcing both lenders and regulators to rethink long-standing rules.

Related: Man who urged everyone to buy $1 in Bitcoin blames Trump family for October crypto crash

Key Points

• US housing affordability crisis deepens as first-time buyer age hits record 40 and entry barriers rise

• Young Americans increasingly rely on family support as traditional paths to homeownership break down

• Lenders and policymakers explore new asset classes for mortgages 

America’s housing squeeze is no longer just a rates story. It is now a generational wealth story, with first-time buyers getting older, down payments getting harder to assemble and family money increasingly deciding who gets through the door.

Data from the National Association of REALTORS, published on Nov. 4, 2025, show the median age of first-time US homebuyers has climbed to a record 40, while Northwestern Mutual said on March 9 that 74% of parents with children at home would consider or have already started planning to help their kids buy a home.

That shift is changing how younger Americans think about savings.

Northwestern Mutual said 29% of those parents now view helping a child buy a home as more important than helping pay for college, while 55% said the two goals matter equally.

“Homeownership has become a team sport, and parents are increasingly the MVPs,”

Northwestern Mutual wealth management adviser John Roberts said.

It is also nudging the market toward newer forms of wealth. Younger adults remain the most likely Americans to have used crypto, according to Pew Research, and housing firms are increasingly treating digital assets as something more than a speculative side bet.

On March 26, Coinbase and Better Home & Finance launched what Better called the “first token-backed, conforming mortgage,” allowing qualified borrowers to pledge Bitcoin or USDC to fund a cash down payment while still taking out a standard conforming mortgage.