With the median home sales price having skyrocketed from $313,000 in Q1 2019 to $416,900 in Q1 2025, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2025’s Most (and Least) Affordable Cities for Home Buyers, with nearby Baltimore coming in as the #7 most affordable large city in the country and #25 overall (including mid-sized cities).
In order to determine the most affordable cities for home buyers, WalletHub compared 300 U.S. cities across ten key metrics. The data set ranges from the costs of homes and their maintenance to tax rates and vacancy rates.
Rank (1=Best) Large Cities (Score):
1 Detroit, MI (73.42)
2 Pittsburgh, PA (73.30)
3 Memphis, TN (70.33)
4 Indianapolis, IN (69.83)
5 Cleveland, OH (69.36)
6 Philadelphia, PA (68.40)
7 Baltimore, MD (68.33)
“Best” vs. “Worst” (overall):
• Flint, Michigan, has the most affordable housing (median house price divided by median annual household income) which is 9.7 times cheaper than in Santa Barbara, California, the city with the least affordable housing.
• Honolulu has the lowest median real-estate tax rate which is 10 times lower than in Paterson, New Jersey, the city with the highest.
• Flint, Michigan, has the highest rent-to-price ratio which is 14 times higher than in Santa Monica, California, the city with the lowest.
• Boise, Idaho, has the highest median home price appreciation which is 6.3 times higher than in Stamford, Connecticut, the city with the lowest.
• Miami Beach, Florida, has the highest vacancy rate which is 17.9 times higher than in Fontana, California, the city with the lowest.
To view the full report and your city’s rank, see the report here.