Top Five Most Affordable US Metropolitan Cities To Live In

Big-city housing is becoming more unaffordable. Although mortgage rates eased in 2014, home ownership in the U.S. is still unaffordable for most Americans, according to results from Interest.com’s 2014 Home Affordability Study. The report takes an annual look at how the cost of buying a home stacks up against income and expenses in the nation’s metropolitan areas.

Out of the 25 largest U.S. metropolitan areas, Minneapolis and Atlanta swapped the top two spots this year as the most affordable, with Minneapolis taking the No. 1 spot. St. Louis, Detroit and Pittsburgh rounded out the top five spots on the list.

A few factors worked in the Twin Cities' favor -- median income and a diverse economy -- the report said. The median income in Minneapolis is $67,194, nearly $15,000 higher than the national average. “We’ve got a pretty diverse economy here, a lot of medical tech, a lot of corporate headquarters,” Herb Tousley, director of real estate programs at the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis, said in the study. “So a fair number of people have a higher income.”

Atlanta, which led the 2013 ratings, slipped to No.2 in 2014 due to a rise in home prices, a 16 percent increase that was more than three times the national average. Although St. Louis, which came in at No. 3, saw median home prices climb 9.74 percent to $149,900 this year, housing in the city remained among the cheapest in the country, ahead of Detroit and Pittsburgh.

Meanwhile, the least affordable metro area is San Francisco. The city’s median income of $79,624 is 46 percent less than what is required to buy a median-priced home in the area, which is $769,600. But San Francisco was not the only California metro area named one of the least affordable. Los Angeles (No. 22), San Diego (No. 24) and San Francisco (No. 25) join New York City (No. 23) and Miami (No. 21) among the five least affordable markets.

Here's a breakdown of Interest.com’s 2014 Home Affordability Study:

Most Affordable U.S. Metropolitan Areas

1. Minneapolis, Minnesota

Median Home Price -- $212,900

2. Atlanta, Georgia

Median Home Price -- $166,200

3. St. Louis, Missouri

Median Home Price -- $140,900

4. Detroit, Michigan

Median Home Price -- $149,000

5. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Median Home Price -- $143,690

Least Affordable U.S. Metropolitan Areas

1. San Francisco, California

Median Home Price -- $769,600

2. San Diego, California

Median Home Price -- $504,200

3. New York, New York

Median Home Price -- $396,700

4. Los Angeles, California

Median Home Price -- $420,300

5. Miami, Florida

Median Home Price -- $270,000