Across the United States, real estate is becoming too expensive for residents, even in what were recently considered some of the country's most affordable cities.
To find where residents are being priced out of housing markets where they could once manage to buy, financial site SmartAsset analyzed national data and ranked the cities by percent change in home value to household income ratios.
Researchers found that "many once-affordable markets are trending toward scenarios where residents are housing cost-burdened," meaning some people are forced to spend more than the government-recommended 30 percent of their monthly gross income on housing.
Here are the top 10 once-affordable cities where residents are being priced out:
North Las Vegas, Nevada
2016 home value to household income ratio: 3.44
2017 home value to household income ratio: 4.04
Percent change: 17.47
Garland, Texas
2016 home value to household income ratio: 2.4
2017 home value to household income ratio: 2.81
Percent change: 17.42
Irving, Texas
2016 home value to household income ratio: 2.58
2017 home value to household income ratio: 2.99
Percent change: 15.64
Dallas, Texas
2016 home value to household income ratio: 3.33
2017 home value to household income ratio: 3.76
Percent change: 13.21
Gilbert, Arizona
2016 home value to household income ratio: 3.35
2017 home value to household income ratio: 3.78
Percent change: 12.7
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2016 home value to household income ratio: 3.72
2017 home value to household income ratio: 4.18
Percent change: 12.51
Jacksonville, Florida
2016 home value to household income ratio: 3.08
2017 home value to household income ratio: 3.44
Percent change: 11.73
Nashville, Tennessee
2016 home value to household income ratio: 3.88
2017 home value to household income ratio: 4.27
Percent change: 10.23
St. Louis, Missouri
2016 home value to household income ratio: 3.12
2017 home value to household income ratio: 3.41
Percent change: 9.43
San Antonio, Texas
2016 home value to household income ratio: 2.72
2017 home value to household income ratio: 2.96
Percent change: 8.96
SmartAsset: Top 10 once-affordable cities where residents are being priced out
To arrive at these conclusions, SmartAsset began with the largest 100 U.S. cities and used U.S. Census Bureau data to analyze household incomes and median home values from 2016 to 2017. Researchers then "filtered out any city that had a 2016 median home value to median household income ratio above 4:1."
Having narrowed down the list to 56 "affordable" cities, researchers ranked the cities by percent change in home value to household income ratios. Across those 56 housing markets, they found, the relative price of the average home is on the rise in 43.
Compared with prices in expensive cities, housing costs in these markets may seem relatively reasonable. In the No. 1 city on this list, North Las Vegas, Nevada, the median home value is just over $254,000. In San Francisco, for comparison, the median home value is nearly $1,400,000, or more than five times as much.
Residents of bigger cities tend to have higher salaries, though. In many of these markets, wages are far lower, so even a home value close to the national median can be too expensive for residents.
No matter where you fall on the map, living within your means and employing common-sense budgeting tactics can help you save in the long run. Here are a few tips to get started.
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