United States Starter Home Affordability Crawls Back
Are Starter Homes Becoming More Affordable? As inventory expands, starter home affordability is showing only a modest national improvement. Major structural barriers still block many first-time buyers. Nationally, for-sale supply rose nearly 20 percent from a year earlier. That helped affordability improve slightly in some markets. Since 2017, home sale prices have climbed far faster than wages, underscoring the broader housing cost surge . Mortgage rates near 6.7 percent are reinforcing a lock-in effect that keeps many existing owners from listing their homes. Middle-income households benefited most. Lower-income buyers saw options shrink further. Uneven Gains Deepen Pressure Households earning $75,000 could afford 21.2 percent of listings in March 2025. That is up from 20.8 percent a year earlier. Those earning under $50,000 could afford just 8.7 percent of listings. That is down from 9.4 percent. Prices remain historically stretched, with median homes costing six times median incom...