Least affordable housing, US metro areas · 2000
US metro areas ranked by the CensusEasy Afford Score, median home value divided by median household income (2023 ACS). A higher score means a home costs more years of local income. Nantucket, MA leads at 10.5. 918 metro areas qualify in total. California carries 12 of the top 25 entries.
Flip the list · Most affordable housing, US metro areas →UPDATED 2026-06-02 · DATA: US CENSUS BUREAU ACS 5-YEAR ESTIMATES
Frequently asked
Which metro area has the highest afford score?
Nantucket, MA ranks #1 with 10.5 (2000 American Community Survey).
What are the top 5 metro areas by afford score?
Nantucket, MA, Vineyard Haven, MA, Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA, San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA, Jackson, WY-ID.
How many metro areas are in this ranking?
918 metro areas qualify after filtering for population minimums and data availability. The ranking covers 2000 ACS 5-year data.
How is afford score measured?
CensusEasy Afford Score: median home value divided by median household income, the number of years of a typical local income it takes to buy a typical local home. Lower is more affordable. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2000).