HAR Housing Affordability Index: Less than half of Houston-area residents can afford a median-priced home

Climbing prices and rising interest rates have created a climate of unaffordability for potential homeowners as the minimum required income to meet expenses of a median-priced home in the Greater Houston Area rose 26.9% in the last year, according to the Houston Association of Realtors.

This trend is not exclusive to Houston or other Texas metros areas, with the minimum income needed to afford a home within the U.S. rising 26.5%, according to HAR.

The minimum qualifying household income varies dramatically across the state, with Houston and San Antonio hovering around the state average of $73,200; the Dallas metro area’s minimum qualifying income is $81,200, while Austin’s metro rose to $120,400—more than $30,000 more than the previous year, according to HAR data.

“Austin has seen the largest influx of people coming from California, and what we have seen [is] those people who are coming from high-priced states are kind of importing their prices with them,” Houston Association of Realtors Chair Jennifer Wauhob said.

The median price of a home in the Houston area is about $330,000, Wauhob said, well below the median price of $375,300 across the U.S., according to the National Association of Realtors.

In the Houston area, 47% of households make the minimum income necessary to afford that median price.

“We do have inventory that is below that, so don't just assume that you're one of those 53% who can't qualify based on your income ... .” Wauhob said. “There are more affordable options out there.”