How Much Americans Think They Need To Make To Afford Homes
Written by
Crystal Mayer
Edited by
Chris Cluff
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According to a recent Harris Poll real estate survey, “Two-thirds of Americans believe they need under $150,000 a year to afford to be a homeowner.” Many people, however, also believe they may never be able to afford homes they love and believe that housing or rent expenses are why they can’t get ahead financially.
GOBankingRates looked at previous data to find out exactly how much you will need to afford a home in the United States. See whether you have enough money to become a homeowner throughout the U.S., and find out why some people think buying property may be out of reach.
How Much Money Do You Need To Make To Buy a Home in the US?
Nearly 40% of respondents to The Harris Poll said they needed to make less than $99,000 yearly to afford a home in the United States. Boomers felt strongly that they didn’t need to make six figures to buy a house, with 49% of baby boomers saying they needed less than $100,000.
Do All Generations Believe They Can Afford Homes?
Not all generations are as optimistic about homeownership. Younger generations were less likely to think you needed to make under $100,000 to purchase property. When surveyed, 36% of Gen Zers believed it would take a salary of $100,000 to $149,000. Overall, 30% of people believed they would need to make this amount.
Gen Zers and millennials are more skeptical about whether they can buy homes at all. Per the survey, 42% of respondents agreed with the statement, “No matter how hard I work, I’ll never be able to afford a home I really love.” Almost half (46%) of Gen Zers found the statement to be true.
Do People Need To Make Over $150K To Buy Homes?
Of those surveyed, 12% responded that it would take between $150,000 and $199,000 to become a homeowner. Almost one-third of millennials, 21%, said buying a home would take an annual salary of $200,000 or more. Unfortunately, depending on where you live, it may take becoming a higher-wage earner to afford the home you want.
How Much You’ll Really Need to Afford a Home in America
At GOBankingRates, we previously researched how much of your salary you’ll need to spend to afford a house across America. We found that in most areas, particularly in the South and Midwest, you can still afford a home while making a salary under six figures.
However, if you’re hoping to purchase California property, you’ll need to make over $150,000 per year. You’ll also have to pay a larger percentage of your income toward your mortgage. It’s estimated that 60% of your income needs to be put toward your mortgage, considerably more than is typically recommended by financial experts.
You will need an annual salary of $100,000 or more to buy a house in most Western states, including Hawaii, Oregon, Utah, Colorado and Washington.
How Much You Need To Buy a Home on the East Coast
Like the West Coast, East Coast housing is quite costly. We looked at the median home values in 16 popular East Coast cities and the average annual salary to afford a house in those areas.
In a place like Boston, you will need to make over $165,000 a year to buy property due to a median home value of $644,400. In Washington, D.C., on the other hand, you might be able to get away with making slightly less (around $140,000) and still afford a home.
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