IL Among Top 3 Most-Affordable States To Buy A Home: Ranking

ILLINOIS — Illinois is the country’s third most-affordable state to buy a home, according to a recent ranking.

The study looked at earnings data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and house price data from the website Realtor to determine affordability. The ranking was conducted by the personal finance and lifestyle website Wealth of Geeks, and counties with fewer than 100 listings were omitted.

In Illinois, the median home costs $297,450, which is 4.02 times the state’s average 2023 salary of $73,978.67, according to the ranking. House prices are 30.8 percent lower in Illinois than the typical national pricetag of $429,896 and wages in the state are 11.24 percent higher than the nationwide average of $65,660.40, the study said.

Ohio, where, at $249,900, the median house costs 3.99 times the average salary, was ranked most affordable in the study. Michigan, where the median house is four times the average salary at $259,900, came in second. Pennsylvania was ranked behind Illinois in fourth place, with the median house costing $285,378, or 4.15 times the average salary.

The typical American must spend 6.52 times their annual salary to afford a home, according to the study.

Hawaii was ranked as the least affordable state to buy a home, with a median house cost of $850,000, or 13.44 times the average annual wage.