Redfin Report: Homebuyers Need to Earn Nearly $80,000 to Afford Typical U.S. Starter Home, Just Below Highest Price Ever Page 1

(NASDAQ: RDFN) — The monthly housing cost for the typical U.S. starter home sold in July was $1,981, up 4.4% from a year earlier, according to a new report from Redfin (redfin.com), the tech-driven real estate brokerage. That means homebuyers would need to earn $79,252 annually to afford the typical starter home, also up 4.4% year over year and just a few hundred dollars shy of the all-time high price set in October.

Americans need to earn more than they did a year ago, and much more than before the pandemic, to afford a starter home, as mortgage rates soar and home prices near record highs. The average mortgage rate was 6.85% in July, down slightly from the spring peak but still more than double the pandemic-era lows. The average starter home sold for a record $250,000 in July, up 4.2% year over year.