Frisco is the fifth-best city for first-time homebuyers, according to NerdWallet.com, a personal finance website. The city was ranked among 300 municipalities throughout the United States according to their average housing costs, real-estate tax rates, median home-price appreciation and property crime rates. Frisco was among five Texas cities to be ranked in the Top 10. Plano and McKinney were Nos. 6 and 8, respectively. City Councilman and real estate broker Jeff Cheney said he was not surprised by this new study. “Frisco constantly receives awards and accolades as a city people want to live in and visit,” he said. “On any list we’re usually right up there and we excel.” Cheney said first-time buyers are not just looking for a house but for a city with good schools and jobs. “For third or fourth-time buyers, they’re just looking for a different house whereas a first-time buyer this is their first house and it’s a big deal for them,” Cheney said. As a city councilman, Cheney said the quality of the school districts determines growth for a city, and for people starting families it’s important that good schools surround their first home. “Frisco ISD really pushes Frisco to the top and with new development and attractions coming to Frisco, makes the city an exciting, vibrant place to live,” Cheney said. Cheney said the average cost for a first-time homebuyer ranges between $200-$250,000. “From a city council perspective, one of the challenges the city faces is that the housing prices are really increasing,” Cheney said. “The average price for new construction is $500,000, so the city is working on new concepts to still provide affordable housing as the housing market increases.” In 2014, the National Association of Realtors reported that among buyers of primary residences, 33 percent were first-timers, whereas the historical average has been 40 percent for this group, according to NerdWallet. In a recent Gallup poll, 41 percent of non-homeowners in 2015 do not plan to buy a home in the future, compared with 31 percent two years ago. According to NerdWallet, because the housing market collapsed nearly a decade ago homebuyers are more skeptical than ever, especially given the drastic variations in economic recovery across the United States.