• The following table shows the top 10 metro areas with more than 1 million households [1] that require the least amount of income to purchase a typically priced home [2].
• Detroit is number one on the list, while Chicago rounds out the bottom of the top 10.
• While most of the metro areas on the list are from the middle of the country, Tampa, FL and Riverside, CA are currently affordable enough to be found in the top 10.
• Homeownership and vacancy rates for these metros fall around the US average of 66 percent and 14 percent, respectively.
• Find out how qualifying incomes compare in your metro area.

[1] 23 metro areas and divisions covered in NAR’s initial review of 149 metro areas met the 1 million household threshold according to Census 2010 data.
[2] Qualifying income calculated by limiting the monthly principle and interest payment to 25 percent of income. The mortgage payment is calculated for a median priced home in the metro area assuming the given down payment and a 4 percent mortgage rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage.