Walker Webcast Ivy Zelman, EVP and Co-Founder of Zelman, a Walker & Dunlop Company
Sep 3, 2026
Ivy Zelman, executive vice president and co-founder of Zelman, is a leading U.S. housing analyst known for major market calls. She examines whether the housing shortage narrative still holds, how slowing population growth and young adults living at home are reshaping demand, and why multifamily prospects vary sharply by region. She also discusses mortgage lock-in, affordability, wealth transfers, and lessons from her A Decade Divided research.
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Small Household Shifts Create Huge Housing Effects
- A one-percentage-point change in young adults living at home can alter annual household formation by approximately 500,000.
- That sensitivity can determine whether analysts label the market undersupplied, balanced, or oversupplied.
A New Car Finally Got Ivy’s Daughter Out
- Ivy Zelman persuaded her 26-year-old daughter to move out by buying a car that would not fit beside hers.
- Her daughter subsequently rented with a roommate in relatively affordable Cleveland.
Family Wealth Is Quietly Supporting First-Time Buyers
- Intergenerational wealth is already supporting housing demand through cash purchases and down-payment assistance.
- Cash purchases have risen to roughly 30%, while about 20% of FHA first-time-buyer loans receive down-payment assistance.
