According to ATTOM’s Q3 2024 U.S. Home Affordability Report median-priced single-family homes and condos are still less affordable compared to historical norms in 99 percent of counties with sufficient data. This trend, observed since 2022, reflects a persistent challenge in homeownership, with housing costs consuming historically significant portions of incomes nationwide.
The report highlighted that major expenses for median-priced homes now account for 33.5 percent of the average national wage. While this is a modest improvement from the previous quarter, it remains nearly the same as a year ago and continues to exceed the typical 28 percent lending guideline.
ATTOM’s latest home affordability analysis revealed that despite modest improvements in both historical and current affordability measures, third-quarter data highlights that homeownership continues to be financially challenging for average workers nationwide. This trend comes as the national median home price has risen to $365,000 this quarter, and while mortgage rates have decreased, they remain above 6 percent, keeping ownership costs higher than preferred lending guidelines.
The third-quarter 2024 report stated that over the summer months, the typical cost of major homeownership expenses has decreased by 3 percent, coinciding with an increase in average wages. This combination is improving affordability for prospective homebuyers. Although the share of wages spent on these expenses is unchanged compared to last year, it has declined for the second consecutive quarter.
The latest home affordability analysis assessed affordability for average wage earners by estimating the income needed to cover key monthly homeownership expenses—such as mortgage payments, property taxes, and insurance—for a median-priced single-family home or condo, based on a 20 percent down payment and a 28 percent “front-end” debt-to-income ratio. This required income was then compared to annualized average weekly wage data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The affordability report found that in the third quarter of 2024, homeownership is less affordable than historical averages in 99.5 percent of the 578 counties analyzed, a level consistent with the second quarter of 2024 and the same period last year—significantly higher than the 5.4 percent seen in the first quarter of 2021. However, historical affordability indexes improved in roughly three-quarters of the counties reviewed, lifting the nationwide index from its lowest point in 17 years.
In this post, we take a more granular look at the data behind ATTOM’s latest U.S. Home Affordability Report to reveal the top 10 U.S. counties with the largest quarterly increase in Affordability Indexes in third-quarter 2024. Among those counties with a population of at least 100,000 and at least 50 single-family home and condo sales in the third quarter of 2024, those with the largest increase in affordability index (under 100 is less affordable than historic average) are enumerated. Additionally, we provide a comparison with the Q2 2024 and Q3 2024 Indexes.
#10 – Santa Barbara County, CA
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 16.6%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 80
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 69
#9 – Marin County, CA
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 16.8%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 86
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 74
#8 – Travis County, TX
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 17.5%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 82
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 70
#7 – Summit County, OH
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 17.7%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 70
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 59
#6 – Montgomery County, AL
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 18.1%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 99
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 84
#5 – Houston County, AL
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 18.7%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 86
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 73
#4 – Lake County, OH
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 18.7%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 76
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 64
#3 – Richmond City County, VA
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 19.7%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 76
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 64
#2 – Mobile County, AL
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 27.7%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 96
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 75
#1 – Fairfield County, OH
- Quarterly Percentage Change in Affordability Index: 36.8%
- Q3, 2004 Affordability Index: 74
- Q2, 2004 Affordability Index: 54
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