10 Cities Where It’s Easiest for New Homeowners To Pay Off Their Mortgage

A good financial rule of thumb is to dedicate no more than 30% of your income to housing, but this can be a challenge as home prices rise and mortgage payments increase. However, there are some cities where the median household can easily afford the median mortgage payments for the area.

To find the cities where it’s easiest to pay off a home, SmartAsset analyzed mortgage data from last year for the 40 largest U.S. metro areas. The study determined the median principal and interest payments on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage, which was then compared to the median income of new homeowners.

Here’s a look at the 10 cities where it’s easiest for new homeowners to afford their mortgage payments.

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 16.4%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,377
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $101,000
• Median property value: $265,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 17.1%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,894
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $133,000
• Median property value: $365,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 17.5%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,228
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $84,000
• Median property value: $225,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 17.6%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,408
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $96,000
• Median property value: $265,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 17.7%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,723
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $117,000
• Median property value: $345,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 17.9%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,570
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $105,000
• Median property value: $295,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 18%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,678
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $112,000
• Median property value: $345,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 18.5%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,570
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $102,000
• Median property value: $315,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 18.7%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $1,623
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $104,000
• Median property value: $305,000

• Housing payments as a percent of gross pay: 19.1%
• Monthly principal and interest payment: $2,549
• Median annual income of new homeowners: $160,000
• Median property value: $505,000

Data is sourced from SmartAsset and is accurate as of Sept. 24, 2024.