King County, needless to say, has a lot more people today than it did in 1960. The population has grown by more than 1.4 million since then, hitting 2.34 million last year, about a 150% increase.
Despite all that growth, there’s one segment of the county’s population that’s barely increased in number in the past 60-plus years: Young, married homeowners.
At one time, it was commonplace for a young adult in King County to already be married and to have purchased a home. Census data from 1960 shows 69,100 such county residents in the 25-to-34 age group. The total population ages 25 to 34 was only around 120,900, meaning those who were also married and homeowners made up the clear majority — about 57% — of people their age in the county.
Fast forward to today. The total number of people ages 25 to 34 living in King County has grown tremendously over the years. The latest census figure, which is an average of data collected between 2019 and 2023, shows about 408,200 county residents in this age group, more than three times the 1960 number.
But the number of them who are married and have purchased their home has hardly changed, at around 74,100 — that’s only about 5,000 more than in 1960.
As a result, young, married homeowners are nowhere near a majority in King County anymore. In fact, they represent a mere 18% of the county’s total 25-to-34 population.
The change is striking, but perhaps not too surprising, because marriage and homeownership are no longer considered key milestones of adulthood, as they were for previous generations. Owning a home in many parts of the county has become an unattainable goal for many young people as housing prices have risen dramatically.
The traditional timeline of marrying young, buying a starter home and having kids has been replaced, for many young people, with a more individualized path to adulthood. Many young adults are delaying marriage, often into their 30s, or simply not marrying at all. Also, fewer young people are choosing to have children, and birthrates have also been on a steady decline for years.
Instead, they may prioritize personal development and career advancement, and many choose living with a partner without formal marriage.
According to census data, the median age of first marriage in Washington was 30.4 years for men and 28 years for women in 2023.
Marriage has long been seen as a preliminary step toward purchasing a first home, and the fact that many more young adults are unmarried surely plays a role in declining rates of homeownership.
There are also economic factors. Young people today often have higher levels of student debt than previous generations. Housing costs have also risen sharply in many urban areas, including King County, making it more difficult to save for a down payment or qualify for a mortgage. Many would-be first-time buyers here feel like the only way they could ever afford to buy a home is to leave the area for somewhere less expensive.
While the share of young county residents who are married and own their home has plummeted over the decades, another group of young homeowners has increased: Those who have never been married.
In 1960, it was quite rare for a young, unmarried person to purchase a home. Census data shows just 5,900 such individuals, representing around 5% of the 25-to-34 population in the county.
The most recent census data shows a 12-fold increase in the number of never-married single homeowners, at around 70,800. They represent 17% of the total 25-to-34 population, nearly the same as the 18% share of their peers who own a home and are also married.
