Across the full sample, pursuing homeownership ranked as the top wealth-building tool, but this result was driven primarily by respondents aged 30 and older. Among younger adults (under 30), investing in stock index funds ranked first instead, while pursuing homeownership fell to fourth place. This age divide held consistent across both first-choice and top three rankings. This report examines these age differences in wealth-building preferences.
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Brief
Buying a Home Is Viewed as the Best Wealth-Building Tool but Less So Among Young Adults
25 Sep ’26
To understand how Americans view the most effective ways to build wealth, we surveyed about 5,000 U.S. adults in 2026, asking how they would advise someone to use a financial windfall to build future wealth.