| If you are in the market for a new home, you may | | | | will tell you their city has great shopping and nightlife, |
| be finding that many homes are simply out of your | | | | a world-class children's museum and of course, the |
| price range despite the recession and the increased | | | | country's most famous racetrack. |
| number of foreclosures. Nationwide, house prices | | | | Depending on which list you go by, the second and |
| actually rose about 3% for the second consecutive | | | | third most affordable cities are both in the Midwest |
| quarter in 2009, partly due to lower mortgage rates | | | | as well - Detroit, MI and Youngstown, OH. Both of |
| and an extension of the First-Time Homebuyer | | | | these cities have lost a significant number of jobs |
| Credit. | | | | during recent years, meaning more foreclosures - and |
| However, if you happen to live in one of the most | | | | more bargains for homebuyers. A perfectly adequate |
| affordable US cities - or able to relocate - there are | | | | three-bedroom house in Detroit just sold for $6,900 - |
| still places where you can get a lot more house for | | | | less than half the price of most new cars. |
| your money. Traditionally of course some areas of | | | | Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Kansas City and Cincinnati are all |
| the country have always been more affordable than | | | | also inexpensive places to live, with lower than |
| others - the Midwest and Southeast, for example. | | | | average house prices. And Texas has several large |
| A recent study by the National Association of Home | | | | metropolitan areas that regularly appear in lists of |
| Builders of the most affordable large cities in America | | | | most affordable cities - Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth and |
| found that Indianapolis, IN is the most affordable | | | | Houston. If you are looking for something more rural, |
| place to live. The average house price is an | | | | Pennsylvania, North Carolina and West Virginia are all |
| affordable $107,000 - a figure well below the national | | | | inexpensive. |
| average of $190,000. Most of the city's 2 million | | | | And the least affordable cities in the United States? |
| residents or so can easily afford to buy as the | | | | It will come as no surprise to residents of New York |
| average family income is around $68,000. | | | | City, Honolulu and Los Angeles to learn that those |
| The city suffers from unemployment along with | | | | places have the highest house prices in the country. |
| everywhere else, although at around 7.7%, it's less | | | | In most of these cities, you will need close to half a |
| than the national average of almost 10%. It's not | | | | million dollars to buy a house, rather than an |
| only the affordable housing and the overall standard | | | | apartment. |
| of living that make the city such a draw. Residents | | | | |