The National Association of Realtors had predicted a 14 percent increase in existing-home sales for 2026, but this prediction has now fallen due to a war in Iran that has caused mortgage rates to rise. The median home now costs roughly five times the median household income, a significant increase from the previous three decades. This shift has led to a downward trend in the housing market, with many expecting more buyers and sellers to return. The consequences of this shift will be severe, with renters aged 65 holding a small fraction of the net worth of owners of the same age and retiring poorer. The loss of home ownership has also led to decreased birth rates, marriage rates, and the PTA loses volunteers and the local council struggles to recruit new members. The political cost of this system is also predicted to increase as a generation locks out of ownership, fuelling political discontent.