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Where can you afford to buy a home?

Set your annual income and see which counties stay inside the 30% housing rule. Data pulled from Census ACS median owner cost with mortgage and HUD CHAS cost-burden rollups. Counties shown have reported monthly owner cost.

$75,000

Monthly budget at 30%: $1,875

Affordable
2,823
counties
Share
90%
of counties
Dataset
3,138
with data
$20,000$500,000

Counties by monthly housing cost

Distribution of counties across the US, median owner cost with mortgage (Census ACS). Orange line marks your 30% budget.

Affordable counties by state

Top 15 states by number of counties inside your 30% budget.

Most affordable counties at this income

Lowest median owner cost, where monthly housing stays under 30% of your income.

State-level affordability

Most affordable counties in each state.

Frequently asked questions

What is the 30% rule for housing?

A widely cited rule of thumb is that total housing costs should stay under 30% of gross household income. HUD uses the 30% threshold to flag 'cost-burdened' households and 50% for 'severely cost-burdened.' The rule is a starting point, not a hard limit.

What costs are included in this comparison?

The slider compares your 30% monthly budget against each county's median monthly owner cost with a mortgage (Census ACS table B25088). That figure includes mortgage, real-estate taxes, insurance, utilities, and HOA fees. Your actual number depends on down payment, rate, and home price.

How many US households are cost burdened?

According to HUD CHAS 2017-2021, about 44.5% of US households pay 30% or more of income on housing, and 20.7% pay 50% or more.

Where does the county data come from?

Median owner cost, home value, rent, and income figures come from the Census ACS 5-year estimates. Fair Market Rents come from HUD. Cost-burden rollups come from the HUD CHAS dataset.

Data sources

Disclaimer. HomeRule is not a real estate agent, lender, appraiser, or financial advisor. This content is for educational and informational purposes only. Actual costs vary significantly by property, location, and individual circumstances. Consult qualified professionals for personalized advice.