Young Homebuyers Banking on Refinancing Gamble, Truework Finds

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A new survey from Truework, San Francisco, found that younger buyers are making financial bets on their ability to refinance in the future.

Truework surveyed 1,000 recent U.S. homebuyers to find that nearly two-thirds of Gen Z (64%) and Millennial buyers (65%) say 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 younger Americans who are banking on a future drop in interest rates. 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.

Truework Co-founder and CTO Victor Kabdebon said 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 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.”

Overall, Truework found a “generational divide” in both confidence and financial stress during the homebuying process, with younger buyers facing specific challenges compared 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, which provides 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.”