Median Home Down Payments in Las Vegas Fall Over 18 Percent Year-Over-Year
LAS VEGAS, NV – A new report by Redfin shows that the median down payment by a homebuyer in the United States has fallen for the first time in five months, with a 1.5 percent year-over-year overall drop – falling to $64,000 – as of December 2025, the most recent month for which data is available.
However, when the country’s 38 most populous major metropolitan areas are examined individually, that amount of decreases varies wildly; in Las Vegas, for example, the median homebuyer’s down payment dropped to $34,125 in December 2025, which represents an 18.8 percent decline from the same period of time in 2024.
The down payment data referenced by Redfin is limited to transactions for which buyers took out a home mortgage.
While median home prices increased overall to a slight degree in December, down payments dropped in-part due to buyers putting down a lower percentage of the purchase price when compared to the same period of time one year before – 15.2 percent in 2025, in contrast to 16.7 percent in 2024.
Redfin Principal Economist Sheharyar Bokhari noted that home affordability issues, combined with a tight economy and high inflation, are driving buyers on a budget to look for more modest dwellings in order to save money.
Down payments may be falling in part because Americans are seeking out more affordable homes due to high prices, elevated mortgage rates and economic uncertainty,” he said. “Sellers typically prefer buyers who make large down payments because it signals financial stability, but sellers don’t have much say in today’s market. Buyers hold the negotiating power because there are more homes for sale than people who want to buy them.”
The median down payment percentage was highest in San Francisco (25 percent), San Jose (23.9 percent) and Anaheim (21.4 percent). It was lowest in Virginia Beach (3 percent), Atlanta (8.4 percent) and Las Vegas (8.4 percent).
Shelter Realty Property Management specializes in the areas of Henderson, Las Vegas and North Las Vegas, NV. Feel free to give us a call at 702.376.7379 so we can answer any questions you may have.
Christopher Boyle is an expert investigative journalist for SEARCHEN NETWORKS® and reports for independent news and media organizations in the United States. Christopher keeps a keen-eye on what’s happening in the Vegas real estate market on behalf of Shelter Realty Property Management