10 States With the Least Affordable Homes

Question

A new study shows where in the U.S. home prices are the most out of whack with income.

In most parts of the country, a family with a median household income should—ideally—be able to afford a median-priced home in that area. In fact, an ******** of county-level data from RealtyTrac showed that a monthly payment on a median-priced home wasmore affordable than fair-market rent on a three-bedroom unit in 76% of counties studied, making buying a home the more economical choice for many Americans.Of course, there’s a lot more at play when determining if you can afford a house than looking at your paycheck and the rental market—buying a house often requires a home loan, which can be tougher to come by if you don’t have good credit. At the same time, a good credit score will only get you so far in the home-buying process, because if housing in your area is exceptionally expensive, even a median household income may not get you much house. (Thiscalculator can show you how much house you can afford.)To determine the states where housing is least affordable, the Corporation for Enterprise Development divided the state’s median housing value by the median family income in that state, according to 2013 Census data. A breakdown of all 50 states and the District of Columbia is available through its ****** & Opportunity Scorecard tool. Here are the states with the least affordable homes.
10. (tie) Rhode Island2013 median housing value: $232,300
2013 median household income: $55,902
Ratio of median housing value to median income: 4.2

10. (tie) Vermont2013 median housing value: $218,300
2013 median household income: $52,578
Ratio of housing value to income: 4.2

8. Washington2013 median housing value: $250,800
2013 median household income: $58,405
Ratio of housing value to income: 4.3

7. New Jersey2013 median housing value: $307,700
2013 median household income: $70,165
Ratio of housing value to income: 4.4

6. Oregon2013 median housing value: $229,700
2013 median household income: $50,251
Ratio of housing value to income: 4.6

5. New York2013 median housing value: $277,600
2013 median household income: $57,369
Ratio of housing value to income: 4.8

4. Massachusetts2013 median housing value: $327,200
2013 median household income: $66,768
Ratio of housing value to income: 4.9

3. California2013 median housing value: $373,100
2013 median household income: $60,190
Ratio of housing value to income: 6.2

2. District of Columbia2013 median housing value: $470,500
2013 median household income: $67,572
Ratio of housing value to income: 7

1. Hawaii2013 median housing value: $500,000
2013 median household income: $68,020
Ratio of housing value to income: 7.4


Those are some eye-popping figures, especially if you’re from the other *** of the spectrum, like Iowa or Michigan, where the median home price is just 2.4 times the median income in those states. Places like Hawaii, D.C. and California are significant outliers, though.
Nationwide, the median-priced home ($173,900) is 3.3 times the median household income ($52,250), but homeownership remains out of reach for many Americans. Homeownership rat

Answer 1

All liberal states, no surprise. They give examples of beautiful homes but in most places a lot gets you nothing!

Answer 2

Actually .. not surprising at all ...
(each of the states listed have high costs of living .. )

Answer 3

So basically it is the West Coast and the Northeast coast plus Vermont.

Answer 4

I'm surprised Florida (especially Miami) isn't on the top 10 list. The pay scale here is way below the national average and realistically it isn't easy to find a decent house for less than the lower two-hundred thousands.

Answer 5

since when is over $200,000 affordable when you only make $55,000 a year!! you going to spend a life time paying off your mortgage!

Answer 6

and not a one of those places would I ever choose to live. No thank you.

Answer 7

and guess who the elitist are and guess how those elitist vote --liberal!So much for the lie that the libs care about the poor!

Answer 8

Wait, living in a state where houses are more expensive than the national average means they don't care about the poor? Remember, this doesn't mean the houses are the biggest or the most luxurious, just more expensive than the national average.

Are you insinuating living in a nice house means one doesn't care about the poor?

Do tell the correlation please!

Answer 9

How could anyone thing the two are congruent?

Answer 10

I live in a modest house (bi-level) roughly 50 miles outside NYC. It sits on 1/2 acre land, build in 1979.

It's market value is close to $400,000. Move that house to Tennessee the value goes down to $150,000.

You see how this works?

Answer 11

Amazing isn't it!

Answer 12

That's a pretty stupid statement. Except for the Seattle area Washington is conservative.

Answer 13

What can I say, I am a stupid guy! Ha! Seattle is not a conservative area --who is the mayor of seattle? Who runs the city? Who runs the state? I don't know? But I do know it is one of the worlds most beautiful places!

Answer 14

As I said, "Except for the Seattle area Washington is conservative."

Answer 15

All liberal states, no surprise. They give examples of beautiful homes but in most places a lot gets you nothing!

Answer 16

Unions are to blame