U.S. Housing was less affordable in June this year than in last 33 years

According to data released this week by the National Association of Realtors, housing in the United States was less affordable in June this year than it has been in the last 33 years.

The data showed a three-decade low in the affordability of homes in the country. The median sale price of a single family home in the United States hit an all-time high of $423,300 in June, an all-time high and a $7,900 increase from the previous month. The NAR data showed the last time housing was so unaffordable was in 1989. 

The measures were calculated using the NAR’s housing affordability index, which is measured using mortgage rates, median single-family home prices, and median household incomes. The data revealed the Western United States was the least affordable housing market in the US, at a score of only  69.6  on the NAR index followed by the Southern US, which scored a 99.3. The Northeast and Midwest regions came in at 102.3 and 132.3, respectively.

Another metric included in the NAR data that may shock prospective homebuyers is the qualifying annual income. This year, according to the NAR, the qualifying income for a mortgage measured a whopping $93,312 a year. The average salary in the United States, last recorded in 2020 by the Social Security Administration, was $55,628.60. In the Western US, the median household income is 98,498, while qualifying income in the region has soared to  $141,552.

“The fast rising home prices and the high mortgage rate cramped housing affordability in June to its worst in over 30 years. More supply is clearly needed to moderate home price growth to give income time to catch up,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun.