Charted: The housing and income gap closes
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The median home price was 4.8 times the median income in Austin last year, according to a Harvard analysis.
Why it matters: Following a divergence during the pandemic, household income is slowly closing the gap with home prices — even as home prices continue to outpace incomes nationwide.
- In 2022, the median home price in Austin was 5.7 times the median income.
The big picture: In 2023, the national median sales price for existing single-family homes was 4.9 times the median household income, Harvard researchers from the Joint Center for Housing Studies found.
The latest: Home prices continue to fall in greater Austin — over 3% year-over-year, per Redfin research.
- As of August, Redfin pegged the income needed to purchase a median-priced home in Austin at $114,250 — down 5.8% from a year previous.
Yes, but: Median household income in greater Austin is $103,805, meaning just 28% of home listings in August were affordable for median-income households.
💭 Our thought bubble: The data once again shows how housing was more easily in the grasp of middle-class Austin earners decades ago.
- In 1990, the median home price was just 2.4 times the median household income.
Go deeper: Researchers' interactive map