These Are the Top 10 Most–and Least–Affordable Cities for Buying a Home

Over the last five decades, home prices in the U.S. have grown at a much faster rate than incomes, which has made affording to buy a home increasingly difficult.

In fact, according to a new report by home financing company Best Interest, home prices have risen by about 551 percent since 1980, while household incomes have only risen by 373 percent. That makes the national home price-to-income ratio 5.08 - which is significantly higher than the recommended maximum ratio of 2.6.

For the report, Best Interest analyzed data from the 50 most populous U.S. cities to determine which cities are the most and least affordable for home buyers. Read on to see the lists.

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Pittsburgh Is the Most Affordable Major U.S. City for Buying a Home

In some cities across the U.S., the home price-to-income ratio is a bit closer to the recommended maximum ratio of 2.6, making those cities some of the most affordable for home buyers.

Of the 50 cities analyzed for the report, Pittsburgh came in as the No. 1 most affordable, thanks to its relatively low home price-to-income ratio of 3.07. In the Pennsylvania city, the median home price is just over $237,000, whereas the median income is about $77,200.

Here's the full list of the top 10 most affordable U.S. cities, with their home price-to-income ratios in parentheses:

1. Pittsburgh, PA (3.07)
2. Cleveland, OH (3.27)
3. St. Louis, MO (3.61)
4. Detroit, MI (3.62)
5. Oklahoma City, OK (3.63)
6. Cincinnati, OH (3.86)
7. Dallas, TX (3.95)
8. Louisville, KY (3.97)
9. Atlanta, GA (4.03)
10. Minneapolis, MN (4.03)

If You Want to Afford a Home, San Jose Is the Least Affordable Major City

When looking at the 50 most populous U.S. cities, Best Interest declared San Jose as the least affordable city for buying a home, thanks to its whopping home price-to-income ratio of 11.65. The Northern California metro's median home costs more than $1.9 million, and its median income is around $164,800.

Here are the 10 least affordable U.S. cities, alongside their home price-to-income ratios:

1. San Jose, CA (11.65)
2. Los Angeles, CA(9.75)
3. San Francisco, CA (9.62)
4. San Diego, CA (9.11)
5. Miami, FL (7.88)
6. New York, NY (7.55)
7. Seattle, WA (6.85)
8. Riverside, CA (6.54)
9. Providence, RI (6.48)
10. Boston, MA (6.43)

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This story was originally published May 1, 2026 at 8:00 AM.