The Americans say that $ 74,000 a year is the “perfect salary”. But that can only afford to buy you a house in two states

The Americans consider that the amount of money as “perfect salary”, according to a recent survey of more than 2,000 American adults by the search for speakers. This is the average amount that respondents said they needed to be happy, and half of the respondents said that the current amount they earned is not enough to support their lifestyle, even beyond the accommodation.

Although the average amount is $ 74,000, it is not enough to afford to buy a house in all American states except two: Virginie -Western and Louisiana, according to Realtor.com – and even the doubling of this “perfect salary” at $ 148,000 will not give you a house in each state.

“Winning the” perfect salary “may still not afford a house at a median price in most states,” said Hannah Jones, senior economic research analyst at Realtor.com, in a press release.

The new house at a median price in the United States costs more than $ 410,000 and an existing house will cost you more than $ 422,000, the US census office and the National Association of Realtors Data. And in states like California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Colorado and Washington, buyers can expect to pay much more than $ 600,000 to buy a house at median prices.

Assuming that you buy a house for $ 422,000, lower a conventional 20% and your mortgage rate is around 6.5%, which means that you would end up spending almost $ 2,500 for your monthly mortgage payment. It would be much more than a third of a gross monthly salary, which is generally discouraged. Most real estate experts warn against spending more than a third of your salary for housing.

But assuming a salary of $ 148,000, this payment of $ 2,500 would not feel as an authoritarian, that is to say if you have the possibility of spending the deposit and you can even find a house that meets your needs in this median price range.

The biggest obstacles for us buyers

While a large part of the conversation on the housing market has focused on mortgage rates – which continue to hover in the middle of 6% – a sticky problem is that the prices of houses are historically high.

“These are really the prices of houses that are the biggest obstacle,” said Michelle Griffith, a luxury real estate broker with Douglas Elliman in New York Fortune. “Even if mortgage rates have dropped to zero, reality is that purchase on the market … still requires a significant amount in cash.

However, mortgage rates are an obstacle for certain buyers, in particular those recalling mortgage rates of less than 3% of the pandemic era. This is also the reason why many current owners remain in place and refuse to sell.

“Many owners are reluctant to put their home in the market and abandon the low mortgage rates they already have,” according to the home services of Warren Buffett Berkshire. “For them, high prices gains will not fasten their ability to pay more for another house at significantly higher interest rates.”

Torsten Sløk, chief economist for Apollo, wrote in a note Thursday that the housing supply is stable because current owners do not want to sell and assume higher mortgage rates. Meanwhile, demand slows down because house prices and mortgage rates remain relatively high. This could be good news on the prices of houses.

“The main thing is that there is downward pressure on the prices of houses from the drop in demand and the rise in supply,” said Sløk.

Although it is not much, mortgage rates are also slightly lower in recent months and growth in home prices is mainly stable or slightly decreasing.

Improving the affordability of housing “will take time, years probably, (but) the balance of powers is no longer as unilateral as during the pandemic frenzy,” wrote Mark Fleming, chief economist of the Fortune financial service company 500 First American. “For potential buyers waiting for the key, the housing market is finally starting to listen to.”

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