Syracuse most affordable us market

Syracuse, New York, is the most affordable major housing market in the USA, according to new research.

The latest National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index shows that 95.6 per cent of all new and existing homes sold in the first quarter of 2015 were affordable to families earning the area’s median income of $68,500, making it the nation's most affordable for the second quarter in a row.

Also ranking among the most affordable major housing markets in respective order are Toledo, Ohio; St. Louis; Akron, Ohio; and Harrisburg-Carlisle, Pa.

Sandusky, Ohio tops the affordability chart among smaller markets in the first quarter of 2015. There, 96.3 per cent of homes sold during the first quarter were affordable to families earning the area’s median income of $69,600. Other smaller housing markets at the top of the index include Cumberland, Md.-W.Va.; Elmira, N.Y.; Davenport-Moline-Rock Island, Iowa-Ill.; and Kokomo, Ind.

Lower interest rates and home prices all contributed to a solid nationwide boost in affordability between January and March 2015, says the NAHB.

"The past two quarters have seen an improvement in affordability as mortgage rates remain low," says NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. "Eighty-five percent of the metropolitan areas measured experienced an increase in affordability."

For a 10th consecutive quarter, San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, California, is the nation’s least affordable major housing market. There, just 14.1 per cent of homes sold in the first quarter were affordable to families earning the area’s median income of $103,400.

Other major metros at the bottom of the affordability chart were Los Angeles, Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine, New York-White Plains-Wayne, and San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara.

All five least affordable small housing markets were in California.