Home ownership in the United States has rarely been more financially demanding. Two recent reports confirm that the burden on American households is mounting from multiple directions: mortgage rates pushing toward 2023 highs are eroding purchasing power, while the full ongoing cost of owning a home has climbed more than 30 percent over the past five years.
According to ATTOM, a property data and real estate analytics firm based in Irvine, California, homes were less affordable than historical averages in 98 percent of U.S. counties with sufficient data for the third quarter of 2026.
In 570 of the 583 counties analyzed, major monthly ownership expenses on median-priced single-family homes and condos exceeded their historical norms although the national median home price stood at $368,000 in the third quarter – down from $370,000 the prior quarter and $375,000 a year earlier.
However, the slight price relief was absorbed almost entirely by rising borrowing costs. The 30-year fixed mortgage rate reached 7.3 percent at the end of the third quarter, and the 15-year fixed rate stood at 6.6 percent, both approaching levels last seen in 2023.
"Affordability remained a challenge in the third quarter, even as some of the underlying factors moved in a favorable direction," said Rob Barber, CEO of ATTOM. "Home prices declined nationally and wage growth outpaced price growth in many counties, but those gains were not enough to meaningfully improve affordability across much of the country."
ATTOM calculates affordability by measuring whether the income needed to cover principal, interest, property taxes, homeowners insurance and mortgage insurance on a median-priced home – assuming a 20 percent down payment and a 28 percent maximum front-end debt-to-income ratio – is within reach of the average wage earner in each county. On that basis, meeting the 28 percent affordability guideline was beyond the means of residents in 80.1 percent of the 583 counties analyzed, based on Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data.
Among the most heavily cost-burdened populous counties in the third quarter, major ownership expenses consumed 92.6 percent of typical wages in Orange County, California; 69.9 percent in Los Angeles County; and 69.6 percent in San Diego County. In Cook County, Illinois, the figure was 30.2 percent, and in Maricopa County, Arizona, 37 percent.
By contrast, homeownership remained within reach for average earners in Harris County, Texas, at 20.7 percent of wages, Wayne County, Michigan, at 17.9 percent, and Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, at 20.2 percent. That kind of geographic dispersion matters for clients weighing relocation, retirement location or investment property decisions.
The mortgage and purchase price figures only capture part of what clients actually pay.
A separate analysis released the same day by Zillow and Thumbtack found that the ongoing costs of homeownership – covering maintenance, homeowners insurance and property taxes – now total $16,566 per year for the typical U.S. homeowner, equivalent to roughly $1,380 a month on top of any mortgage payment.
That figure has risen approximately 32 percent over the past five years, though the pace of growth has cooled to around 3 percent in the most recent year.
Insurance premiums are the fastest-moving component and, for many clients, the most underappreciated one. Over the past five years, homeowners insurance costs have jumped 54 percent nationally, outpacing maintenance cost growth of 32 percent and property tax increases of 19 percent.
In 19 of the 30 metro areas analyzed, premiums are up at least 50 percent over five years. Dallas leads the list at 75 percent, followed by Tampa at 71 percent, Denver at 70 percent and Houston at 69 percent. Homeowners in Houston, Phoenix, Denver and Nashville now pay more annually for insurance than for property taxes – a shift that has real implications for how advisors model total housing costs in financial plans.
"Many households focus so much on winning the home and underestimate what it costs to live in it," said Zillow Senior Economist Kara Ng. "Long after they receive the keys, insurance, taxes and upkeep are recurring expenses to plan for. Since these homeownership costs vary so much by market, home shoppers should run the numbers and understand what they can truly afford before they make an offer."
Across the 30 metros analyzed, maintenance remains the largest single cost category, representing approximately two-thirds of the total. Annual maintenance tops $12,000 in Seattle ($12,594) and Boston ($12,486). Los Angeles saw the sharpest year-over-year maintenance increase at 27 percent, reflecting wildfire recovery activity, elevated demand for home services and persistently high labor costs.
The highest overall hidden cost burdens sit in coastal markets: $25,111 annually in New York, $24,383 in San Francisco, $22,915 in Los Angeles and $22,096 in Boston. Even Phoenix, the least expensive market in the analysis, runs $14,187 a year.
Taken together, the two reports describe a housing market where purchase affordability and ongoing carrying costs are both under meaningful pressure – and where clients across income levels may be underestimating what homeownership actually costs.
A client purchasing a median-priced home nationally in the third quarter of 2026 would need an annual income of approximately $90,191 to meet the 28 percent front-end ratio guideline, according to ATTOM's methodology, against a national average wage of $79,534 based on the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
That gap – roughly $10,600 annually – represents a meaningful shortfall for average earners and a planning challenge for advisors working with clients who are stretching financially to buy.
The Zillow and Thumbtack data adds another layer. When the $16,566 in annual hidden costs is added to a monthly mortgage on a $368,000 home at 7.3 percent, the true carrying cost picture looks considerably tighter than the mortgage payment alone would suggest.
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