In December 1975 the Case-Shiller US National Home Price Index was at 26.45. In December 2015 it was at 175.65. Case-Shiller prices are nominal. So nominally, h

In December 1975 the Case-Shiller US National Home Price Index was at 26.45. In December 2015 it was at 175.65. Case-Shiller prices are nominal. So nominally, home prices have risen 564% in 40 years. (http://us.spindices.com/indices/real-estate/sp-case-shiller-us-national-home-price-index http://us.spindices.com/indices/real-estate/sp-case-shiller-...) In 1974, median real household income for those aged 25-34 was about $54,000 per year. In 2014, it was roughly the same. (http://www.advisorperspectives.com/dshort/updates/Household-Incomes-by-Age-Brackets http://www.advisorperspectives.com/dshort/updates/Household-...) Using a BLS inflation calculator, we can calculate the 1974 nominal median income for those aged 25-34 as $11,245. (http://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm http://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm) As a sanity check, I checked the Census for the median household income in 1974 and it was $12,840, which makes sense. (http://www2.census.gov/prod2/popscan/p60-101.pdf http://www2.census.gov/prod2/popscan/p60-101.pdf) So in 1975, the Case-Shiller index to young household median nominal income ratio was 0.00235. In 2015, it was 0.00325. This means that in 40 years, the amount of money young households must pay for buying a house has risen by 38%.