Moneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below.

Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has won championships and coached some of the greatest players in NBA history. But in a recent interview with the New Yorker, Kerr wasn't just focused on basketball — he also discussed the American Dream (1).

"When I finished college almost forty years ago, if you went to school and got a degree, you could get a job and you could buy a house," Kerr said, before exploring his concerns for today's America.

Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now become a landlord for as little as $100 — and no, you don't have to deal with tenants or fix freezers. Here's how

Dave Ramsey warns nearly 50% of Americans are making 1 big Social Security mistake — here’s how to fix it ASAP

The IRS usually taxes gold as a collectible — but this little-known strategy lets you hold physical bullion tax-free. Get your free guide from Priority Gold

That traditional path, long considered a given for middle-class Americans, has become nearly impossible to follow.

"That's out of reach for most people between student debt and home prices and the economy slanted toward the very, very top one per cent," he continued.

Kerr's never been one to mince words about his opinions regarding America, and he didn't shy away in this interview, either.

"We don't really have a middle class," he told the New Yorker, "and we don't have what used to represent the American Dream, which was: you can do better than your parents. We're going backward on all that."

Kerr acknowledges his own situation is different, that his family lives well, but "millions of people out there, young people who are looking at the horizon and saying, 'I did everything I was told I needed to do, and I can't buy a house, and I can't chase my dream.'"

For decades, homeownership was the backbone of the Dream's promise.

It wasn't just about having a place to live. It was how middle-class families built wealth, created stability and passed something down to the next generation. If you could get a steady job and pull yourself up by your bootstraps, the thinking went, you would be able to buy a home.

Today, that math just doesn't add up.

Home prices have vastly outpaced wage growth, rising around 74% compared to wages at 54% from 2010 to 2022 (2).

The impacts of this vary across state lines. For example, home prices in Texas and Florida (and most of the western US) rose more than twice as quickly as wages. States like Oregon and Colorado, however, are not as affected.

On top of that, the average 30-year mortgage rate doubled to near 6.7% post-pandemic, causing monthly payments on a median home to nearly double compared to just a few years prior and pushing affordability to 40-year lows (3).

At the same time, young Americans are entering markets later. The median age for first-time homebuyers is now 40 years old, due to Millennials delaying ownership by several years, and Gen Z has a homeownership rate of 26% by their late 20s (4).

The delay is largely due to student loan burdens, with the average student loan debt per borrower rising to $42,673 (5). These loans also last, with some borrowers taking up to 20 years to become debt-free — something that could interfere with purchasing a home.

And, of course, that's to say nothing of the rising costs of living that make it harder to save in the first place. The consumer price index rose to 3.3% year-over-year as of late March (6).

Read More: Robert Kiyosaki warned of a 'Greater Depression' — with millions of Americans going poor. Was he right?

At its core, the middle-class wipeout comes down to a widening gap between incomes and costs.

Data from the Pew Research Center shows that the middle class is being squeezed from both sides. The share of Americans in middle-class households dropped from 61% to 51% in 2023, attributed to income inequality, as income growth for high-earning households has outpaced that of the middle class consistently since the 70s (7).

Consequently, its share of national income has shrunk from 62% to 42% between 1970 and 2020, despite being the largest income group (8).

The result is exactly what Kerr described in the interview: A growing group of people who did everything "right," but still find themselves locked out of one of the most important wealth-building tools in the economy.

Even for those who can afford to buy, the margin for error is thinner than it used to be.

That's why, in today's market, how you finance a home can matter just as much as whether you buy one at all.

Even small differences in your mortgage rate can mean paying or saving tens of thousands of dollars over time. Yet many buyers still go with the first offer they receive, locking themselves out of massive savings or homeownership entirely.

Freddie Mac recommends shopping around and obtaining quotes from at least three to five lenders to secure the best mortgage rate.

To make that process easier, the Mortgage Research Center (MRC) lets you quickly compare rates and estimated monthly payments from multiple vetted lenders in one place.

By entering a few basic details (like your ZIP code, property type, price range and income), you can view personalized mortgage offers and see what lenders are actually willing to offer you, instead of guessing. MRC can also help existing homeowners refinance their mortgage.

In a market where affordability is already stretched, that kind of transparency can make a meaningful difference.

But for many Americans, the problem isn't finding the right mortgage. It's getting a foot in the door at all.

When home prices require six-figure down payments and monthly costs stretch beyond what most incomes can support, owning a home becomes a far-off dream rather than a near-term goal.

But while the traditional path is surely disappearing, as Kerr suggests, there are new ways to participate in real estate. After all, if you can't own a home, you may need to find another way to build your wealth.

You can tap into the housing market by investing in shares of vacation homes or rental properties through Arrived.

Arrived allows you to invest in shares of rental and vacation properties, giving you exposure to real estate without needing to buy an entire home or take on the responsibilities of being a landlord. In the first quarter of 2026, investors with Arrived received over $3.7 million in total dividends (9).

Instead of saving for years to afford a single property, you can get started with as little as $100.

From there, you'll get access to more than 400 properties across 60 cities. It's a way to participate in real estate — even if traditional homeownership isn't within reach right now.

For those who want more than entry-level exposure to real estate, you can get access to the kind of deals typically reserved for the ultra-wealthy.

Rental properties have long been a cornerstone of high-net-worth portfolios, accounting for nearly a quarter of the typical family office allocation. But the capital, time and operational demands of managing multiple properties have historically kept that market out of reach for most people.

That's where Mogul comes in.

The platform offers fractional ownership in blue-chip rental properties, giving investors exposure to institutional-quality real estate without the burden of owning and managing properties outright. Plus, you might even get some monthly income and appreciation to go along with it.

Founded by former Goldman Sachs real estate investors, Mogul focuses on the top 1% of single-family rental opportunities across the U.S., selecting properties based on strict performance criteria.

Each deal is underwritten to deliver a target minimum 12% return, even in downside scenarios, with reported average annual IRRs around 18.8%. Cash-on-cash yields typically range from 10% to 12% annually, offering a more income-focused approach than entry-level platforms.

Importantly, each property is held in a standalone entity, meaning investors have direct ownership of the asset itself — not just a stake in the platform.

If you're looking to move beyond entry-level exposure, you can browse available properties and invest in just a few steps.

For most Americans, the path to homeownership now requires more strategy, flexibility and willingness to look beyond tradition.

Kerr's warning isn't just about what's been lost, but what's at stake. The Dream itself may be harder to reach — but it isn't gone. Not yet.

Even if the system isn't working the way it once did, the drive to build something better, to do better than the generation before, hasn't disappeared.

Robert Kiyosaki says this 1 asset will surge 400% in a year and begs investors not to miss this ‘explosion’

No time to lower your crippling car insurance rate? Here’s how to do it within minutes — you could end up paying $29/month without a single phone call

Millionaires under 43 are reshaping investing — just 25% of their portfolios are in stocks. Here’s where their money is going

Vanguard’s outlook on U.S. stocks is raising alarm bells for retirees. Here’s why and how to protect yourself

Join 250,000+ readers and get Moneywise’s best stories and exclusive interviews first — clear insights curated and delivered weekly. Subscribe now.

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines.

The New Yorker (1); USA Facts (2); Savvy Wealth (3); Housing Wire (4); Education Data (5); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (6); Pew Research Center (7), (8); Arrived (9)

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.