Housing affordability has been contested for some time in the U.S., with many markets experiencing sky-high home prices in recent years. Now, as a number of experts agree the U.S. economy is heading into a recession in the wake of the coronavirus, housing markets across the country are facing new uncertainties. A newly-updated report from HSH.com uses the latest quarterly home price data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), as well as local property tax and homeowner's insurance costs, to calculate the income needed to afford the base cost of owning a home (principal, interest, property tax and homeowner's insurance, or PITI) in the nation's 50 largest metropolitan areas. Check out the most and least affordable metro areas in the slideshow above. HSH's research revealed that the median annual income needed to afford a median-priced home across all markets decreased by $2,675.61 year-over-year in Q4 2019. Additionally, fourth-quarter 2019 saw improved home affordability in most metro areas compared to the same period in 2018, as lower mortgage rates helped offset rising home prices. For example, a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 3.85% in Q4 2019. For the same period in 2018, the average rate was 4.90%, HSH notes. However, falling mortgage rates can only help home buyers to an extent when faced with rising home prices. "Despite relative improvements in affordability, potential homebuyers of more modest means looking to buy homes often struggle to come up with a downpayment and closing costs, especially in heated markets," said HSH in a statement. According to the company, a borrower with enough cash to make a downpayment for a median-priced home last year would need about 6.5% more savings this year just to keep pace. Related: |

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