Real Estate

$326,000 Income Needed to Buy House in Bay Area

Housing affordability in California slid to the lowest level in nearly 16 years as interest rates stayed above 6 percent for the third straight quarter and home prices remained elevated by a shortage of homes on the market, according to the California Association of Realtors (C.A.R.).

Less than one in five (16 percent) home buyers could afford to purchase a median-priced, existing single-family home in California in second-quarter 2023, down from 19 percent in the first quarter of 2023 and down from 17 percent in the second quarter of 2022, according to C.A.R.’s Traditional Housing Affordability Index (HAI). The second-quarter 2023 figure is less than a third of the affordability index peak high of 56 percent in the first quarter of 2012.

C.A.R.’s HAI measures the percentage of all households that can afford to purchase a median-priced, single-family home in California. C.A.R. also reports affordability indices for regions and select counties within the state. The index is considered the most fundamental measure of housing well-being for home buyers in the state.

A minimum annual income of $208,000 was needed to qualify for the purchase of a $830,620 statewide median-priced, existing single-family home in the second quarter of 2023. The monthly payment, including taxes and insurance (PITI) on a 30-year, fixed-rate loan, would be $5,200, assuming a 20 percent down payment and an effective composite interest rate of 6.61 percent.

The effective composite interest rate was 6.48 percent in first-quarter 2023 and 5.39 percent in second-quarter 2022. With interest rates near a 17-year high and expected to remain elevated for the rest of the year, housing affordability will remain a challenge for many home buyers in the coming months.

The median price of condominiums and townhomes in California declined from a year ago but was up from the previous quarter. As a result, the share of households that could afford a typical condo/townhome in second-quarter 2023 dipped from the 26 percent recorded in the previous quarter but was unchanged from the 25 percent recorded in the second quarter of 2022. An annual income of $160,400 was required to make the monthly payment of $4,010 on the $640,000 median-priced condo/townhome in the second quarter of 2023.

Compared with California, more than a third of the nation’s households could afford to purchase a $402,600 median-priced home, which required a minimum annual income of $100,800 to make monthly payments of $2,520. Nationwide affordability was down from 38 percent a year ago.

Key points from the second-quarter 2023 Housing Affordability report include:

  • When compared to the previous quarter, housing affordability declined in 47 counties and remained unchanged in four. Unfortunately, not one single county recorded a quarter-to-quarter improvement in affordability. That said, affordability improved from a year ago in 15 counties, while affordability in eight others remained unchanged. However, on a year-over-year basis, affordability declined in the majority of counties (28).
  • Lassen (52 percent) remained the most affordable county in the state and was the only county to record an affordability index of more than 50 percent in the second quarter of 2023. Siskiyou (39 percent), Plumas (38 percent) and Shasta & Tehama (both at 35 percent) followed closely. Together, they were the only five counties to record an affordability index of at least 35 percent, with all five being located in the Far North region. Lassen required the lowest minimum qualifying income ($62,400) of all counties in California to purchase a median-priced home and was the only county in the state with a qualifying income less than $65,000.
  • The least affordable counties in California were Mono (5 percent), Santa Barbara (10 percent), San Luis Obispo (11 percent) and Monterey, along with Orange County (both at 12 percent). Each of those counties required a minimum income of at least $216,800 to purchase a median-priced home in that county. San Mateo continued to require the highest minimum qualifying income ($504,400) to buy a median-priced home in second-quarter 2023 and was the only county with a minimum qualifying income over $500,000. Santa Clara County required the second highest minimum income of $451,200, followed by Marin ($443,600) and San Francisco ($403,600).
  • Housing affordability declined the most on a year-over-year basis in Kings County, falling seven points in second-quarter 2023. Lake recorded the second biggest drop in affordability, sliding five points below the like quarter of last year, followed closely by Amador and Glenn, with each dropping four points from a year ago. Despite higher household incomes and somewhat lower home prices, elevated mortgage rates continued to be the primary factor keeping the cost of borrowing near all-time highs and affordability in a persistent crunch in most of these counties.

CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS
Traditional Housing Affordability Index
Second quarter 2023

 

Second Qtr. 2023 C.A.R. Traditional Housing Affordability Index
STATE/REGION/COUNTY Qtr. 2

2023

Qtr. 1

2023

  Qtr. 2

2022

  Median Home Price Monthly Payment Including Taxes & Insurance Minimum Qualifying Income
Calif. Single-family homes 16 19 r 17 r $830,620 $5,200 $208,000
Calif. Condo/Townhomes 25 26   25   $640,000 $4,010 $160,400
Los Angeles Metro Area 17 19   17   $760,000 $4,760 $190,400
Inland Empire 22 24   24   $570,000 $3,570 $142,800
San Francisco Bay Area 19 21   18   $1,300,000 $8,150 $326,000
United States 36 40   38   $402,600 $2,520 $100,800
                 
San Francisco Bay Area                
Alameda 16 18   15   $1,275,000 $7,990 $319,600
Contra Costa 23 29 r 23 r $900,000 $5,640 $225,600
Marin 16 20   17   $1,770,000 $11,090 $443,600
Napa 19 20   16 r $855,000 $5,360 $214,400
San Francisco 20 21   17   $1,611,000 $10,090 $403,600
San Mateo 17 19   15   $2,012,500 $12,610 $504,400
Santa Clara 18 21   18   $1,800,000 $11,280 $451,200
Solano 26 28   28   $592,750 $3,710 $148,400
Sonoma 16 18   17   $850,000 $5,330 $213,200
Southern California                
Los Angeles 15 17   16   $789,400 $4,950 $198,000
Orange 12 12   12   $1,250,000 $7,830 $313,200
Riverside 20 22   21   $625,000 $3,920 $156,800
San Bernardino 30 30   30   $456,500 $2,860 $114,400
San Diego 13 15   14   $942,350 $5,900 $236,000
Ventura 14 17   15   $915,000 $5,730 $229,200
Central Coast                
Monterey 12 12   13   $865,370 $5,420 $216,800
San Luis Obispo 11 12   12   $880,000 $5,510 $220,400
Santa Barbara 10 15   10   $1,195,000 $7,490 $299,600
Santa Cruz 13 14   13   $1,270,000 $7,960 $318,400
Central Valley                
Fresno 29 32   31   $420,000 $2,630 $105,200
Glenn 32 32   36   $349,000 $2,190 $87,600
Kern 31 33   32   $380,000 $2,380 $95,200
Kings 32 33   39   $361,000 $2,260 $90,400
Madera 31 34   32   $423,000 $2,650 $106,000
Merced 31 32   34   $390,000 $2,440 $97,600
Placer 29 31 r 27   $667,000 $4,180 $167,200
Sacramento 26 29   27   $530,000 $3,320 $132,800
San Benito 19 23   17   $755,140 $4,730 $189,200
San Joaquin 26 27 r 25 r $530,000 $3,320 $132,800
Stanislaus 27 30 r 28   $460,000 $2,880 $115,200
Tulare 33 37   34   $370,000 $2,320 $92,800
Far North                
Butte 29 32   28   $434,950 $2,730 $109,200
Lassen 52 53   54   $249,000 $1,560 $62,400
Plumas 38 42   32   $356,000 $2,230 $89,200
Shasta 35 39   36   $389,000 $2,440 $97,600
Siskiyou 39 41   30   $279,500 $1,750 $70,000
Tehama 35 40   33   $350,000 $2,190 $87,600
Other Calif. Counties                
Amador 28 33 r 32   $461,890 $2,890 $115,600
Calaveras 27 32   29   $490,000 $3,070 $122,800
Del Norte 30 32   31   $365,000 $2,290 $91,600
El Dorado 23 28   24   $699,000 $4,380 $175,200
Humboldt 25 26   24   $438,000 $2,740 $109,600
Lake 28 31   33   $357,000 $2,240 $89,600
Mariposa 24 25   22   $390,000 $2,440 $97,600
Mendocino 17 26   15   $520,000 $3,260 $130,400
Mono 5 7   6   $980,000 $6,140 $245,600
Nevada 25 29   25   $557,500 $3,490 $139,600
Sutter 33 36 r 31   $425,000 $2,660 $106,400
Tuolumne 32 36   33   $418,300 $2,620 $104,800
Yolo 23 28   23   $625,000 $3,920 $156,800
Yuba 26 28   28 r $444,950 $2,790 $111,600

r = revised