Donald Trump Proposes 50-Year Mortgages in Response to Soaring Home Costs

Donald Trump says he wants to make home buying more affordable — but his latest proposal is raising concerns that it could have the opposite effect.

On Saturday, Nov. 8, Trump, 79, shared a graphic on Truth Social suggesting he was open to the idea of Americans having access to 50-year mortgages. The post featured an image of Trump alongside former President Franklin D. Roosevelt under the banner “Great American Presidents,” evoking Roosevelt’s “30-Year Mortgage” initiative that made homeownership more attainable during the New Deal era of the 1940s.

Bill Pulte, director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, appeared to confirm that Trump was exploring the idea, reposting the graphic on X and writing, “Thanks to President Trump, we are indeed working on The 50-Year Mortgage — a complete game changer.”

The concept aims to give homebuyers more time to repay their loans. For example, a $200,000 home with a 5% down payment would cost about $1,976 per month on a 15-year mortgage at 5% interest, according to Fannie Mae’s Mortgage Calculator. That figure drops to $1,493 on a 30-year mortgage and $1,336 on a 50-year plan.

The proposal arrives as the median age of first-time homebuyers continues to climb. According to the National Association of Realtors, the average age was 38 in 2024, compared to “late 20s” in the 1980s. By 2025, the figure had reached 40, with experts warning that delaying homeownership by a decade can cost buyers roughly $150,000 in lost equity on a typical starter home.

While longer mortgages would lower monthly payments, they would also dramatically increase total interest costs. As ABC News reported, a buyer would pay nearly double the interest on a $300,000 home at 5% interest under a 50-year mortgage compared to a 30-year one.

Trump’s proposal faces significant legal hurdles, including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which currently prevents government approval of mortgages longer than 40 years. Critics also warn that extended repayment terms could trap borrowers in debt for most of their lives.

Gennadiy Goldberg, head of U.S. rates strategy at TD Securities, told Politico that such a plan would be “more of a stopgap band-aid to address affordability,” noting that it would slow equity growth. Similarly, Sharon Cornelissen of the Consumer Federation of America cautioned that it could prevent people from “building wealth through homeownership.”

As the average age of buyers rises and mortgage terms stretch, some experts say homeowners could still be paying off loans well into their 90s — a trend that could impact retirement readiness.

Even within Trump’s own party, skepticism is growing. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene wrote on X that the proposal would “ultimately reward the banks, mortgage lenders, and home builders while people pay far more in interest over time and die before they ever pay off their home. In debt forever, in debt for life!”

Although Trump’s post on Truth Social has not yet resulted in an official policy, the White House stated that “President Trump is always exploring new ways to improve housing affordability for everyday Americans. Any official policy changes will be announced by the White House.”

Meanwhile, Pulte said the agency is evaluating a “wide arsenal of solutions” to help young people enter the housing market. “We hear you,” he wrote on X. “We are laser-focused on ensuring the American Dream for young people — and that can only happen through affordable homebuying.”

Pulte later added that his team was studying “assumable or portable mortgages,” which could allow borrowers to transfer their loans to new owners or properties. “We are also working on ways to give relief in the 5-year, 10-year, and 15-year mortgage structures,” he wrote in a follow-up post.