National Homeowners Day Date in the current year: December 26, 2024

Real estate has always been expensive. Until the mid-19th century an average American couldn’t afford to buy a house because it was impossible to save enough money working a regular job and banks wouldn’t grant most people a loan.

The situation began to change in the 1860s following the adoption of the National Banking Acts of 1863 and 1864. They created the national banking system of the United States and laid the foundation for the mortgage system. Initially viewed as an experiment, mortgages became common and popular among middle-class Americans by the 1890s. However, these early mortgages were different from what we have now: they had a much shorter term (five years) and required a bigger downpayment (up to 50%).

Despite a setback caused by the Great Depression, more than half of all Americans owned houses by 1950. The number of homeowners in the United States peaked at 70% in 2004 and has slightly decreased since then due to the difficult situation in the real estate market.

The bottom line is, even though owning a house or a condo has become more affordable over the past couple of centuries, it is still a big deal. To become a homeowner, you need to save enough for the downpayment, have a good credit history to get your mortgage approved, find your dream house or apartment in a good area (and if you have kids or are planning to start a family, you should take the school district into consideration)... the list goes on and on.

It can take years to finally be able to afford your first home, but it makes the purchase so much more rewarding! Not only is buying a home good for you as a new homeowner because it gives you a sense of security and helps build wealth (since home ownership is actually an investment in real estate), it is also good for the economy because it keeps the market steady.

National Homeowners Day was created in 2019 by Paisley Vartanian. Its date wasn’t chosen on a whim; statistically, December 26 is one of the best days to put an offer on a house in order to save money.

How can you celebrate National Homeowners Day? If you’ve been meaning to put an offer on a house or a condo for quite some time, this is the day to finally do it. If you’re not quite there yet, spend the day searching for your dream house or taking other steps that will bring you closer to becoming a homeowner.

If you already own a home, you can join the celebration by doing some much needed repairs that you’ve been putting off, buying a new rug, a set of dishes or anything else to make your home cozier, hosting a family get-together or inviting your neighbors over for a barbecue in your backyard (if you live in a climate suitable for outdoor barbecue parties in December), or celebrating your home in any other way that seems fitting.

National Homeowners Day shouldn’t be confused with National New Homeowners Day, also spelled National New Home Owners Day. The latter is observed on May 1 to celebrate all the people who have just bought their first home. In addition, the National Association of Realtors has declared the entire month of June as National Homeownership Day.