ATTOM’s latest U.S. Home Affordability Report shows that in the fourth quarter of 2025, homes were less affordable than historical averages in almost every county with sufficient data to analyze.
In 99 percent (586) of the 594 counties in ATTOM’s analysis, median-priced single-family homes and condos were less affordable than historical averages in the final quarter of the year. That had also been the case in the previous two quarters, as the national median home price has hovered around a record high of $365,000.
The most recent data includes a silver lining to the nation’s affordability challenges: While homes were less affordable than years past in the overwhelming majority of markets, they were more affordable in the fourth quarter than the third quarter in 86 percent (511) of the 594 counties analyzed.
Mortgage rates also continued to fall, with average interest on a 30-year fixed rate loan dropping from 6.34 percent at the beginning of October to 6.15 percent at the end of the year.
“Many Americans were priced out of buying a home in 2025, and affordability remains worse than historic norms in most markets,” Rob Barber, CEO of ATTOM, said in a release. “Still, modest, quarter-over-quarter affordability improvements in many markets at the end of the year offered some encouragement. Over the past five years, home price growth has nearly doubled wage growth, meaning homebuying power in 2026 will depend not only on whether prices level off or decline, but also on mortgage rates and broader economic conditions.”
Over the past five years, the median sales price of a home has risen 54 percent, to $365,185 in the fourth quarter, while typical wages have risen 29 percent, according to the most recent wage data available from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), which covers the second quarter of 2025.
ATTOM determines affordability for average wage earners by calculating the amount of income needed to meet major monthly homeownership expenses — including mortgage payments, mortgage insurance, property taxes and homeowner’s insurance — on a median-priced single-family home and condo, assuming a 20 percent down payment and a 28 percent maximum “front-end” debt-to-income ratio. That required income is measured against annualized average weekly wage data from the BLS.
In 74 percent (440) of counties, those major home expenses consumed more than 28 percent of the typical resident's wages, making ownership unaffordable by standard guidelines.
The most populous counties where typical home expenses exceeded the 28 percent of wages threshold were Los Angeles County, Calif. (67.5 percent of typical wages); Maricopa County, Ariz. (38.1 percent of wages); San Diego (67.4 percent of wages); Orange County, Calif. (90.3 percent of wages); and Miami-Dade County, Fla. (43.6 percent of wages).
The largest counties where homeownership expenses would be considered affordable were Cook County, Ill. (26.4 percent of typical wages); Harris County, Texas (21.9 percent of wages); Dallas County, Texas (27.6 percent of wages); Philadelphia County, Pa. (19.2 percent of wages); and Cuyahoga County, Ohio (19.6 percent of wages).
The national median home prices rose marginally to $365,185 in the fourth quarter, up slightly from $365,000 in each of the previous two quarters. Typical home prices rose annually in 69.5 percent (413) of the 594 counties analyzed. Counties were included in the report if they had populations of at least 100,000 and at least 50 single-family home and condo sales in the fourth quarter.
Among the 47 counties in the report with populations over 1 million, those with the largest annual increase in median home sales prices were Suffolk County, N.Y. (up 8 percent); Fulton County, Ga. (up 7 percent); Allegheny County, Pa. (up 6 percent); Bronx County, N.Y. (up 6 percent); and Nassau County, N.Y. (up 6 percent).
Of those largest counties, the largest annual drops in home prices were in Honolulu County, Hawaii (down 10 percent); Bexar County, Texas (down 5 percent); Hillsborough County, Fla. (down 5 percent); Alameda County, Calif. (down 5 percent); and Sacramento County, Calif. (down 5 percent).
The cost of a median-priced home grew at a greater rate than typical wages in 43 percent (257) of counties analyzed.
The most populous counties where home price growth outpaced wage growth were Kings County, N.Y.; Queens County, N.Y.; Middlesex County, Mass.; Philadelphia County, Pa.; and Suffolk County, N.Y.
The most populous counties where wages grew at a greater rate than home prices were Los Angeles County, Calif.; Cook County, Ill.; Harris County, Texas; Maricopa County, Ariz.; and San Diego County, Calif.
The typical monthly cost of mortgage payments, homeowners insurance, mortgage insurance and property taxes was $2,015 in the fourth quarter, down 2 percent from the previous quarter and down 1 percent from the previous year.
In the fourth quarter, those major home purchase expenses for a national median priced home would have consumed 31.4 percent of the typical American’s wages.
In 29.5 percent (175) of the 594 counties analyzed, home purchase expenses in the fourth quarter exceeded 43 percent of the typical county resident’s wages, a benchmark considered seriously unaffordable, according to ATTOM.
Of the 25 counties where purchasing a median-priced home would consume the greatest percentage of a typical resident’s wages, 14 were in California, followed by three each in New York and New Jersey.
The counties where purchasing a home was least affordable were Kings County, N.Y. (103.1 percent of typical wages required to buy); Marin County, Calif. (97.3 percent); Santa Cruz County, Calif. (94.4 percent); Orange County, Calif. (90.3 percent); and Monterey County, Calif. (90.3 percent).
Besides Kings and Orange counties, the counties with populations over 1 million that were the least affordable were Queens County, N.Y. (77.1 percent of typical wages required to buy); Nassau County, N.Y. (74 percent); and Los Angeles County, Calif. (67.5 percent).
A buyer would have had to earn $86,374 in the fourth quarter to purchase a national median-priced home and keep expenses below the recommended threshold of 28 percent of annual income. The counties with the highest annual wage requirements to afford a median-priced home were San Mateo County, Calif. ($373,078 annual wage); New York County, N.Y. ($361,784); Santa Clara County, Calif. ($355,001); Marin County, Calif. (327,995); and San Francisco County, Calif. ($326,345).
In 99 percent (586) of the 594 counties analyzed, median-priced homes were less affordable than they have historically been. The counties with the lowest affordability index ratings — indicating they were the least affordable compared to historical norms — were Lackawanna County, Pa. (affordability index of 57); Jackson County, Miss. (affordability index of 58); Berrien County, Mich. (affordability index of 60); Saint Lucie County, Fla. (affordability index of 61); and Niagara County, N.Y. (affordability index of 61).