4 ms·

Median household income was $67,521 in 2020. Doesn't seem outrageous.

yial 4y ago
Which they… can’t really afford a $400,000 house. Assuming they save up 20% for a down payment, and they house is 400k exactly. I’m guessing their take home is around $4,500 a month. I picked a property with low property taxes, and used a typical interest and home insurance amounts. The monthly cost would be $2269 ish with 20% down. That takes them to about 50% of their monthly income. If they had no other debt, (no car payment, no credit cards ) they could maybe qualify with manual underwriting. But it’s not realistic. At $68,000 gross, around $204k-$220k is a more more realistic purchase price, going up more of course based on their down payment.
- joshhart 4y ago
  The median household and the median homebuyer aren’t the same. Median household includes a whole swath of people who need to live with relatives or packed in with a large number of roommates. So the median homebuyer already represents probably the top 25% in terms of income.
  - yial 4y ago
    I wasn’t arguing that they are the same group. I was responding to the comment above that took median household, and commented that “doesn’t seem outrageous”. (I assumed the typical house price referenced tied to the income presented). If the median household cannot afford to buy the median home… I would argue that it’s a problem as long as property continues to be one of the few ways for people to accumulate wealth. But I appreciate your point, and wanted to clarify my response. Anecdotal, checking my town the median household income is listed at $56,000. I watch Zillow frequently, there are very few properties below $250,000. To further compound that (and again anecdotal). I know someone professional who does “credit counseling” for a nonprofit out of Pittsburgh to prepare people to buy a home. (To qualify for first time homebuyers programs, make a budget, help them assess how and where to get financing) and in a recent conversation he shared that the typical person (who is probably not the median homebuyer ) that he works with, has between $500-$1,000 saved. FHA and USDA are options in this area, but since the large down payment is not going in, that further reduces the maximum home price that households can afford. Edit: in my above comment I did make an error in my debt to income ratio, the income I should have said in context for qualifying would be $5,667 a month. Of which the calculated costs would still be 44% of monthly gross income. It would help them to qualify but not change the overall reality of affordability at that household level.

yial 4y ago

Which they… can’t really afford a $400,000 house. Assuming they save up 20% for a down payment, and they house is 400k exactly. I’m guessing their take home is around $4,500 a month. I picked a property with low property taxes, and used a typical interest and home insurance amounts. The monthly cost would be $2269 ish with 20% down. That takes them to about 50% of their monthly income. If they had no other debt, (no car payment, no credit cards ) they could maybe qualify with manual underwriting. But it’s not realistic. At $68,000 gross, around $204k-$220k is a more more realistic purchase price, going up more of course based on their down payment.

joshhart 4y ago
The median household and the median homebuyer aren’t the same. Median household includes a whole swath of people who need to live with relatives or packed in with a large number of roommates. So the median homebuyer already represents probably the top 25% in terms of income.
- yial 4y ago
  I wasn’t arguing that they are the same group. I was responding to the comment above that took median household, and commented that “doesn’t seem outrageous”. (I assumed the typical house price referenced tied to the income presented). If the median household cannot afford to buy the median home… I would argue that it’s a problem as long as property continues to be one of the few ways for people to accumulate wealth. But I appreciate your point, and wanted to clarify my response. Anecdotal, checking my town the median household income is listed at $56,000. I watch Zillow frequently, there are very few properties below $250,000. To further compound that (and again anecdotal). I know someone professional who does “credit counseling” for a nonprofit out of Pittsburgh to prepare people to buy a home. (To qualify for first time homebuyers programs, make a budget, help them assess how and where to get financing) and in a recent conversation he shared that the typical person (who is probably not the median homebuyer ) that he works with, has between $500-$1,000 saved. FHA and USDA are options in this area, but since the large down payment is not going in, that further reduces the maximum home price that households can afford. Edit: in my above comment I did make an error in my debt to income ratio, the income I should have said in context for qualifying would be $5,667 a month. Of which the calculated costs would still be 44% of monthly gross income. It would help them to qualify but not change the overall reality of affordability at that household level.