There isn’t one universal global number, but in countries like the UK and U.S., most 45-year-olds are not mortgage-free yet.
In the UK, recent government survey data shows:
- Ages 45–49: about 16% own their home outright (mortgage-free)
- About 50% are still paying a mortgage in that age group.
In the U.S., the figures are a bit higher overall, but many 45-year-olds still have mortgages:
- Around 19% of homeowners aged 45–54 are mortgage-free according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
- Another dataset suggests roughly 12% of all mortgage-free homeowners fall in the 45–54 age range.
