The Salary Needed to Buy a Home in 50 U.S. Metro Areas

The homeownership rate nationwide is 64.8 percent, slowly reversing a downward trend that started in 2004.

The data for the map below comes from the mortgage information site HSH Associates.

The median home in the United States costs about $257,600. With a 20 percent down payment and a 4.90 percent mortgage rate, and taking into account what’s needed to pay principal, interest, taxes, and insurance on the home, it would mean a prospective buyer would need to have $61,453.51 in salary to afford such a purchase.

The most expensive metros are located in California. For example, San Jose requires the highest salary ($254,835.73). On the flip side, Pittsburgh only requires a salary of $37,659.86 to buy a median-priced home.

The ten most expensive metro areas with the highest salary required for buying a home

1. San Jose – $254,835.73
2. San Francisco – $198,978.01
3. San Diego – $131,640.79
4. Los Angeles – $123,156.01
5. Boston – $106,789.93
6. New York City – $105,684.33
7. Seattle $489,600 – $105,367.89
8. Washington, D.C. – $94,408.70
9. Denver – $91,672.45
10. Portland – $85,173.08

The ten cheapest metro areas with the lowest salary required for buying a home

1. Pittsburgh – $37,659.86
2. Cleveland – $40,437.72
3. Oklahoma City – $41,335.41
4. Memphis – $41,400.93
5. Indianapolis – $42,288.92
6. Louisville – $42,323.15
7. Cincinnati – $43,429.97
8. St. Louis – $44,215.56
9. Birmingham – $44,593.35
10. Buffalo – $45,698.05

The salary you must earn to buy a home in the 50 largest metros

Metro Area	State	Median Home Price	Monthly Payment (PITI)	Salary Needed
San Jose	CA	1,250,000	5,946.17	254,835.73
San Francisco	CA	952,200	4,642.82	198,978.01
San Diego	CA	626,000	3,071.62	131,640.79
Los Angeles	CA	576,100	2,873.64	123,156.01
Boston	MA	460,300	2,491.76	106,789.93
New York City	NY	403,900	2,465.97	105,684.33
Seattle	WA	489,600	2,458.58	105,367.89
Washington, D.C.		417,400	2,202.87	94,408.70
Denver	CO	438,300	2,139.02	91,672.45
Portland	OR	389,000	1,987.37	85,173.08
Sacramento	CA	363,000	1,890.71	81,030.42
Miami	FL	350,000	1,859.95	79,712.22
Austin	TX	310,400	1,859.40	79,688.61
Riverside/San Bernardin	CA	360,000	1,832.41	78,531.85
Providence	Rl	294,200	1,736.72	74,430.80
Salt Lake City	UT	341,000	1,654.82	70,920.97
Baltimore	MD	280,200	1,550.39	66,445.35
Chicago	IL	243,300	1,540.42	66,018.14
Dallas	TX	254,900	1,537.26	65,882.49
Hartford	CT	226,900	1,522.63	65,255.37
Minneapolis	MN	271,200	1,496.46	64,134.21
Houston	TX	237,900	1,455.91	62,396.25
Las Vegas	NV	295,100	1,439.44	61,690.28
Orlando	FL	265,000	1,433.97	61,456.04
Raleigh	NC	276,900	1,430.08	61,289.26
Milwaukee	Wl	243,800	1,424.88	61,066.27
San Antonio	TX	229,100	1,384.02	59,315.21
Philadelphia	PA	224,600	1,374.19	58,894.00
Jacksonville	FL	246,900	1,346.54	57,708.92
Phoenix	AZ	272,700	1,343.42	57,575.01
Nashville	TN	264,000	1,340.81	57,463.36
Richmond	VA	256,500	1,319.80	56,562.92
Tampa	FL	235,000	1,285.77	55,104.27
Charlotte	NC	235,400	1,226.30	52,555.63
Virginia Beach	VA	224,000	1,212.06	51,945.53
Columbus	OH	200,000	1,164.58	49,910.55
Atlanta	GA	216,100	1,162.94	49,840.16
Kansas City	MO	204,000	1,155.40	49,516.98
New Orleans	LA	206,600	1,143.69	49,015.08
Detroit	Ml	186,317	1,092.07	46,802.89
Buffalo	NY	154,200	1,066.29	45,698.05
Birmingham	AL	202,300	1,040.51	44,593.35
St Louis	MO	174,100	1,031.70	44,215.56
Cincinnati	OH	169,400	1,013.37	43,429.97
Louisville	KY	180,100	987.54	42,323.15
Indianapolis	IN	185,200	986.74	42,288.92
Memphis	TN	174,000	966.02	41,400.93
Oklahoma City	OK	161,000	964.49	41,335.41
Cleveland	OH	150,100	943.55	40,437.72
Pittsburgh	PA	141,625	878.73	37,659.86

Data: www.hsh.com

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