While housing affordability remains out of reach for millions of Americans, particularly first-time and entry-level buyers, conditions have improved modestly in the last year, according to the latest data from the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Cost of Housing Index (CHI). The CHI results from the first quarter of 2026 show that a family earning the nation’s median income of $106,800 needed 32% of its income to cover the mortgage payment on a median-priced new home. Low-income families, defined as those earning only 50% of median income, would have to spend 65% of their earnings to pay for the same new home.
The figures are identical for the purchase of existing homes in the U.S. A typical family would have to pay 32% of their income for a median-priced existing home while a low-income family would need to pay 65% of their earnings to make the same mortgage payment.
What NAHB says
“While affordability for both new and existing homes saw modest improvement over the past year, home buyers continue to grapple with elevated mortgage rates and economic uncertainty while home builders are dealing with rising construction costs, excessive regulations and labor shortages,” says NAHB Chairman Bill Owens, a home builder and remodeler from Worthington, Ohio. “Policymakers need to address these supply-side challenges to enable builders to increase the nation’s housing supply.”
“The first quarter CHI data shows that far too many families remain cost-burdened even as housing affordability is slowly trending in the right direction,” says NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz. “A nationwide housing shortage of roughly 1.2 million units continues to exacerbate housing affordability challenges. Policymakers at all levels of government must focus on eliminating obstacles that are preventing builders from building more homes, such as easing burdensome regulations, speeding up permit approval times and providing resources for skilled labor training.”
