So many of us are thinking of purchasing our own homes and here is some pretty basic
information to help us determine if we're ready for that challenge.
Of course, what I want and expect from a home is different from what others want and we all have different ideas of what we need from a home. There's the differences between a 'first' home and a 'dream' home; but whether your purchasing a first home for newly weds or a second or third home midway through your journey, home is where the heart is. In this article, they choose a range of cities with median home prices starting around $150k all the way up to $1M and tell us what it will take to get into a home in these price ranges, from your expected yearly salary to the amount you'll need to save before even attempting to get your mortgage.
The article, from 'make it', CNBC, a recognized world-leader in business news, "The salary you need to earn to be able to afford a home in 15 major US cities", gives insight into just how long it will take someone to save for the down-payment for a median priced home. In cities from Ohio to California the standard for most of us is 20% down. There are special circumstances that allow some to avoid down-payments. Some first time buyers and Veterans may qualify for this, but for the most part most of us will be facing this.
The article points out that if you want to buy a home with a purchase price of $150k you will need to be earning a salary of at least $30,000/year and that it will take you (while earning $30k a year and having living expenses too) approximately 12 years to save the 20% down payment of $30,000 for a home in that price range (save $2500/year or about $210/month). The median home value will vary according to regional and state locations so read on to see if your city made the list.
Just a note from me, and this is just my personal opinion, not to say that someone will not have the drive and determination to achieve this goal on that salary because I'm certain there are people making the sacrifices right now to achieve this, but.... $30,000/year is not much for a family to live on these days and if someone is having to pay for a home to live in(rental or otherwise), cars, and say health insurance for a family on that salary...it will be pretty difficult to set aside $2500/year for 12 years. Now as the median home value goes up in other cities hopefully median salaries are increased as well. Also, lets say you choose a home in a city with a median value of $200k to $300k, it will take you about 17 years to save for the down payment. Do i need to say that I'm staring off into the sunset on that bit of information, in shock? Ugh!
continue reading this article here
happy home hunting, i feel like that might be sarcastic... sorry
xoxo, ande