Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) data show a persistent, widening wealth gap between homeowners and renters. In 2022, median net worth for homeowners was roughly $396,200 versus $10,400 for renters. The Fed also reports that homeowners’ median net housing value (home value minus mortgage debt) jumped from $139,100 in 2019 to $201,000 in 2022, highlighting equity as the engine of wealth.
Parallel research from the New York Fed shows renters’ expectations of ever owning a home have hit new lows. For Veteran families, this is a call to action: the VA Home Loan, paired with disciplined execution, is one of the most powerful pathways into the wealth-building side of this divide.
The Wealth Gap Quantified
The Fed’s most recent triennial SCF confirms an extraordinary spread in net worth: homeowners’ median net worth clocked in near $396,200 in 2022, compared with just $10,400 for renters. That differential is consistent with widely reported “39x to 43x” comparisons seen in press summaries, and the base figures come from the SCF tables themselves. The same report notes that median net housing value (a proxy for home equity) rose sharply between 2019 and 2022, underscoring housing’s role in balance-sheet growth.
Urban Institute’s analysis of the same SCF dataset shows the median wealth gap between owners and renters reached almost $390,000 in 2022, and the average gap exceeded $1.37 million, evidence that the wealth delta is both broad and deep. Over 33 years, homeowners’ median wealth increased by roughly $165,000, while renters’ rose by about $5,800. The long-run effect is cumulative and structural.
What the Fed Concluded About How Households Built Wealth, 2019 - 2022
The Board of Governors’ SCF overview highlights three key mechanisms behind the net-worth gains:
Home equity growth: Rising home prices with relatively flat mortgage balances boosted net housing value, which climbed to a $201,000 median for owners in 2022.
Broader balance-sheet improvement: Net worth rose across the distribution, not just at the top, aided by asset appreciation and still-healthy household cash positions heading into 2022.
Ownership matters: Because equity growth is a function of both amortization and appreciation, families on the owner side of the line captured a “forced savings” stream that renters, by definition, do not.
In short, the Fed’s work reinforces the most important point for our customers: owning earlier captures more of the compounding that creates the gap.
The Renters’ Outlook Has Weakened
The New York Fed’s 2025 Survey of Consumer Expectations (SCE) Housing Survey shows renters now put the chance that they will ever own a home at just 33.9%, down from 40.1% a year earlier and continuing a downward trend since 2016. Expectations for mortgage rates also remain elevated, and households anticipate higher housing costs overall. In other words, the window looks narrower to renters, not wider.
For Veteran families, many on fixed income, many moving every few years, lower confidence can translate into delayed action. The cost of delay is not only today’s rent; it is years of forgone equity accumulation that the Fed’s data show is central to household wealth.
Why This Matters for Veterans
The VA Home Loan program was designed to neutralize the down-payment barrier and align underwriting to real-world military budgets. The Federal Reserve’s findings make the stakes plain: moving from renting to owning is a balance-sheet inflection point. If the median owner’s net worth is roughly $396,200 and the median renter’s $10,400, then every year of renting in one’s prime earning years risks missing a material slice of lifetime equity growth.
The Fed also documents that homeownership rose to 66.1% in 2022 and that equity gains were broadly shared. In practice, that means Veterans who cross the threshold into ownership are stepping into a tailwind that has historically persisted across cycles.
How Equity Builds
Principal paydown: Every monthly payment reduces mortgage principal, increasing net housing value.
Appreciation: During periods of stable market growth, price appreciation steadily builds equity, although home values can also decline during economic downturns, as seen during the 2008-2012 housing crisis.
Residual effect on total net worth: In the SCF, owner households’ overall net worth rose 34% from 2019 to 2022; renter net worth rose 43% off a very low base, remaining a small fraction of owner wealth. The structural wealth effect overwhelmingly favors owners because the absolute dollar gains compound from a much larger starting value.
Headwinds and What Is Holding Renters Back
New York Fed SCE respondents expect higher housing costs and see mortgage access as difficult; renters’ perceived probability of ever owning has fallen to record lows. The macro conclusion is clear: sentiment and affordability together are suppressing transitions from renting to owning. The longer that transition is delayed, the larger the cumulative gap becomes.
A Practical Agenda for Veteran Families
1. Convert Entitlement into Equity Sooner.
The Fed’s data argue for earlier entry, because equity compounds. For qualified borrowers, the VA purchase benefit removes the down-payment requirement that blocks many first-time buyers.
2. Focus on Certainty and Speed.
In competitive markets, fast, fully underwritten VA offers can win. Average VA purchase timelines compare favorably to other loan types, and disciplined processes paired with experienced, VA-literate agents reduce seller concerns.
3. Treat Closing Costs as Solvable.
Cash at closing remains a practical barrier even with zero down. Programs that legally and transparently eliminate out-of-pocket expenses help Veterans cross the line into ownership and begin compounding equity.
For Policymakers and Partners
The Federal Reserve’s SCF and the New York Fed’s SCE offer a straightforward policy insight: homeownership remains the primary engine of median household wealth. Improving Veteran access to ownership is one of the most efficient and effective ways to narrow wealth gaps:
Education: Embed VA purchase counseling in transition programs so service members do not delay entry into ownership.
Market function: Continue modernization that speeds valuations and streamlines guaranty operations for qualified lenders.
Professional training: Expand VA-specific education for real-estate agents and listing brokers to correct misconceptions about VA offers’ speed and reliability.
Each item is small on its own; together, they raise the probability that eligible renters become owners earlier, which is the single most decisive variable in the Fed’s wealth data.
The Bottom Line
The Federal Reserve’s SCF confirms what Veteran families need to hear with clarity: on the typical American balance sheet, homeownership is the difference between modest assets and real wealth. The New York Fed’s survey adds urgency: many renters are losing confidence they will ever own. The solution is a set of steps: eligibility, disciplined execution, and VA-literate offer strategy, that move a renter to the owner’s side of the line, where equity begins doing its work.
