Study Examines Where Renters Can and Cannot Afford to Buy Their Homes

Home ownership is a dream shared by many Americans, but the goal posts for achieving this dream move further out of reach every year. In 2025, the average age for first-time home ownership reached an all-time high of 40 years old. That’s an 8-year increase from just 5 years previous. The biggest obstacle to home ownership is the high price tag. Housing prices have risen by an astonishing 2,000% over the past 60 years. While these statistics might make home ownership seem impossible, the team at MovingPlace.com shows that location is a huge factor in affordability. The team analyzed which ZIP codes have renters who could afford to buy a home. They mapped the results, showing where home ownership is most achievable and where it is flat-out impossible.

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To form their calculations, the team analyzed these factors:

• Median Home Value
• Mortgage Rate
• Monthly Mortgage Payment
• Renter Income
• Monthly Renter Income
• Mortgage-to-Income Ratio
• Average Cost of Rent
• Rent-to-Income Ratio

The results show us that these are the ZIP codes where renters can afford to buy their own home:

• 30349: Atlanta, GA
• 75217: Dallas, TX
• 60617: Chicago, IL
• 37042: Clarkesville, TN
• 60629: Chicago, IL
• 73099: Yukon, OK
• 60623: Chicago, IL
• 78577: Pharr, TX
• 27610: Raleigh, NC
• 28269: Charlotte, NC

The ZIP code with the lowest mortgage-to-income ratio is in Fulton County, Georgia. There are 15 cities in this county, including Atlanta, one of the largest American cities. The result comes as no surprise since Atlanta is one of the most affordable major cities in the country.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are many ZIP codes where homes are so expensive that renters can’t hope to buy in these locations. Here are the ZIP codes with the most prohibitive ratios:

• 11204: Brooklyn, NY
• 10453: Bronx, NY
• 98052: Redmond, WA
• 10025: New York, NY
• 11385: Ridgewood, NY
• 98012: Bothell, WA
• 91709: Chino Hills, CA
• 10314: Staten Island, NY
• 60647: Chicago, IL
• 90250: Hawthorne, CA

Brooklyn has the least affordable American ZIP code. Average renter incomes simply don’t compare with the median home price in Brooklyn, which is $1,198,458. This could pay for five homes in Fulton County, Georgia.

Overall, the team followed a 28/36 ratio rule. The mortgage-to-income ratio had to be below 28% to be considered affordable. We can also see that different areas of a city can differ drastically in home prices. For example, two ZIP codes within the city of Chicago in Cook County are on the most affordable list, while another ZIP code is on the least affordable list. This is nothing new in real estate. Some neighborhoods are more highly sought after than others, and competition drives up prices to shocking heights.

While home ownership is no doubt a challenge, this map shows that there are many places in the U.S. where it’s possible for renters to start house shopping. Location is one of the biggest factors in making the dream of homeownership a reality.c