There are still cities where you can buy your first home before going gray.
A new round-up of affordable US cities offers welcome insight into where young folks can find their starter homes.
The data is timely — the market share of first-time American home buyers reached a record-low this year, making up just 21% of transactions between July 2024 and June 2025, and new homeowners hit an all-time high median age of 40.
American 20- and 30-somethings looking for their first home can still find wallet-friendly cities across the country. Davide Angelini – stock.adobe.com
Oklahoma City scored high marks in affordability, availability and livability. SeanPavonePhoto – stock.adobe.com
In Oklahoma City, the American dream is still alive for 20- and 30-somethings.
An annual report by moving technology company MoveBuddha constructed a “Starter Home Index,” and ranked the capital of Oklahoma first for hopeful homeowners. Oklahoma City scored high marks in the index’s three main categories: affordability, availability and livability.
Residents of the wallet-friendly city invest just 20.4% of their income on mortgages, according to the report, and 54% of local homeowners are under 35 years old.
Mortgage payments on a starter home in Des Moines, Iowa, will require roughly 20% of buyers’ incomes. Jacob – stock.adobe.com
A housing boom has made affordable homes in Austin, Texas, über affordable. David – stock.adobe.comLittle Rock, Arkansas, and Des Moines, Iowa, rounded out the top three. Both capitals offered high housing inventory and mortgages that require roughly 20% of income, according to MoveBuddha.
The fun-filled city of Austin, Texas, ranked second in the availability category. An enviable housing boom in the Lone Star capital has resulted in the highest starter-home availability levels in the country, offering 645 listings per 100,000 residents.
Average incomes in the growing tech-hub ranked highest among the report’s top 25 cities.
While the Midwest continued to dominate in affordability, seven of the top 10 cities ranked by MoveBuddha were concentrated in the South.
Pittsburgh has a very low cost of living. jonbilous – stock.adobe.com
The average Angeleno needs to squirrel away a decade of income to afford a typical home. Tierney – stock.adobe.comOf the Southern region, Birmingham, Alabama, took the cake. Birmingham rounded out the top five list for starter home prospects, and the city’s 2.5% unemployment rate doesn’t hurt, either.
Pittsburgh remains one of the most affordable cities in the country, coming in sixth overall thanks to its low cost of living. A starter home mortgage in the Steel City costs locals roughly 18% of their monthly income — lower than any other American city, according to MoveBuddha.
In the list of 100 metros, the City of Angels ranked dead last.
A home in Los Angeles requires nearly 10 years of income — typical Angelenos earn around $93,525 annually — for average three-bedroom starter home. When they do find home sweet home, the report estimated they’ll have to cough up more than $4,700 each month to pay for it.
