This is the Salary You Need to Buy a Home in 50 U.S. Cities
Depending on where you live, owning a home may seem like a far off dream or it could be fairly realistic. In New York City, for example, a person needs to be making at least six figures to buy a home, but in Cleveland you could do it with just over $45,000 a year.
This visual, using data from Home Sweet Home, maps out the annual salary you’d need for home ownership in 50 different U.S. cities.
Note: The map above refers to entire metro areas and uses Q1 2022 data on median home prices. The necessary salary was calculated by the source, looking at the base cost of principal, interest, property tax, and homeowner’s insurance.
Home Ownership Across the U.S.
San Jose is by far the most expensive city when it comes to purchasing a home. A person would need to earn over $330,000 annually to pay off the mortgage at a monthly rate of $7,718.
Here’s a closer look at the numbers:
| Rank | Metro Area | Median Home Price | Salary Needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | San Jose | $1,875,000 | $330,758 |
| #2 | San Francisco | $1,380,000 | $249,685 |
| #3 | San Diego | $905,000 | $166,828 |
| #4 | Los Angeles | $792,500 | $149,127 |
| #5 | Seattle | $746,200 | $140,768 |
| #6 | Boston | $639,000 | $130,203 |
| #7 | New York City | $578,100 | $129,459 |
| #8 | Denver | $662,200 | $121,888 |
| #9 | Austin | $540,700 | $114,679 |
| #10 | Washington, D.C. | $553,000 | $110,327 |
| #11 | Portland | $570,500 | $109,267 |
| #12 | Riverside/San Bernardino | $560,000 | $106,192 |
| #13 | Sacramento | $545,000 | $105,934 |
| #14 | Miami | $530,000 | $103,744 |
| (Read more...) |