Can empty-nesters boost housing affordability?

The "silver tsunami" of aging Americans is often seen as a potential way to alleviate the country's housing affordability woes. However, the data suggests that an influx of empty-nester homes coming on the market won't have much of an impact on the problem—because of a geographical mismatch. Today on the show, we speak to an economist who's looked into the silver tsunami's impact on the housing market and thinks this theory might be more of a red herring. This episode was fact checked by Sierra Juarez Related episodes: The graying of America What would it take to fix retirement? How big is the US housing shortage? The highs and lows of US rents For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org . Music by Drop Electric . Find us: TikTok , Instagram , Facebook , Newsletter . Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy