Median-priced homes were less affordable than their counties’ historical norms in 570 of 583 U.S. counties in the third quarter of 2026, property data firm ATTOM found. A separate income measure showed ownership costs exceeded its guideline in 80.1% of the counties studied.
The two percentages reflect different comparisons. The 98% figure measures each county against its own affordability history. Under ATTOM’s 28% front-end debt-to-income guideline, which compares housing costs with income, 467 counties were unaffordable. In 180 counties, costs topped 43% of typical wages, a level ATTOM classifies as seriously unaffordable.
ATTOM included counties with 100,000 residents or more if they had at least 50 sales across single-family homes and condominiums during the quarter. Together, those counties had a population of 263 million. The company’s model assumes a 20% down payment and includes mortgage payments, mortgage insurance, property taxes and homeowners insurance.
The national median sale price was $368,000, down from $370,000 in the second quarter and $375,000 a year earlier. ATTOM estimated a household needed annual income of $90,191 to afford a median-priced home, compared with a national average wage of $79,534. Typical ownership costs equaled 31.8% of a worker’s wages.
Local trends varied: prices rose year over year in 375 counties, while wages grew faster than home prices in 343. ATTOM CEO Rob Barber said affordability remained strained in many counties despite the shifts in prices and wages.
Freddie Mac’s weekly survey put the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate at 7.03% on Sept. 24 and 7.40% on Oct. 15. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that consumer prices rose 0.1% in July, 0.4% in August and 0.6% in September, seasonally adjusted. The BLS is scheduled to release October’s Consumer Price Index on Nov. 10 at 8:30 a.m. ET.
