RANKING · 1990 CENSUS · 51 SHOWN OF 51

Least affordable housing, US states · 1990

US states 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. Hawaii leads at 6.2. 51 states qualify in total. The top 25 average 3.4, against an all-states median of 2.4.

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SAME RANKING BYCities Counties Metros ZIP codes

YEAR1990 2000 2010 2020 2024

RANKPLACESTATEPOPAFFORD SCOREVS 2000

01Hawaii, HIHI1,445,2356.2+25%

02California, CACA39,287,3775.4+30%

03Massachusetts, MAMA7,044,0564.4+21%

04Connecticut, CTCT3,624,5084.2+42%

05Rhode Island, RIRI1,101,8014.1+33%

06District of Columbia, DCDC681,2944.0+4%

07New York, NYNY19,852,3664.0+16%

08New Jersey, NJNJ9,343,8093.9+29%

09New Hampshire, NHNH1,394,8683.6+38%

10Vermont, VTVT647,1063.2+18%

11Maine, MEME1,387,8173.1+24%

12Nevada, NVNV3,184,6123.1+3%

13Washington, WAWA7,816,1163.0−14%

14Maryland, MDMD6,206,0112.9+8%

15New Mexico, NMNM2,120,2462.9+5%

16Arizona, AZAZ7,378,8382.9+7%

17Delaware, DEDE1,021,1912.9+11%

18Florida, FLFL22,416,0772.8+16%

19Colorado, COCO5,862,1892.7−19%

20Virginia, VAVA8,705,1702.7+7%

21Louisiana, LALA4,611,9612.6+11%

22Illinois, ILIL12,694,7982.5−9%

23Montana, MTMT1,116,8752.5−15%

24Oregon, OROR4,254,2932.5−31%

25North Carolina, NCNC10,730,4042.5+0%

26Georgia, GAGA10,940,4072.4+3%

27Minnesota, MNMN5,739,4452.4−5%

28Pennsylvania, PAPA13,018,6392.4+1%

29Tennessee, TNTN7,066,3832.3−4%

30Utah, UTUT3,392,3312.3−25%

31South Carolina, SCSC5,296,2252.3+3%

32Idaho, IDID1,934,2622.3−15%

33West Virginia, WVWV1,778,3732.3+3%

34Alaska, AKAK735,7062.3−14%

35Wyoming, WYWY582,3972.3−6%

36Alabama, ALAL5,086,7682.3+0%

37Missouri, MOMO6,191,8142.2−2%

38Mississippi, MSMS2,946,7792.2+8%

39Kentucky, KYKY4,534,8242.2−6%

40Ohio, OHOH11,810,2932.2−11%

41Texas, TXTX30,188,4242.2+12%

42North Dakota, NDND784,8412.2+10%

43Arkansas, ARAR3,049,3912.2+4%

44Wisconsin, WIWI5,914,8722.1−16%

45Oklahoma, OKOK4,028,6342.0−0%

46South Dakota, SDSD907,4282.0−5%

47Michigan, MIMI10,077,7611.9−22%

48Nebraska, NENE1,978,7071.9−13%

49Kansas, KSKS2,947,1971.9−5%

50Indiana, ININ6,851,0731.9−17%

51Iowa, IAIA3,210,5071.7−17%

SHOWING 1–51 OF 51

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UPDATED 2026-06-02 · DATA: US CENSUS BUREAU ACS 5-YEAR ESTIMATES

Frequently asked

Which state has the highest afford score?

Hawaii ranks #1 with 6.2 (1990 American Community Survey).

What are the top 5 states by afford score?

Hawaii, California, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island.

How many states are in this ranking?

51 states qualify after filtering for population minimums and data availability. The ranking covers 1990 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 (1990).