A new report from Keller Williams Realty Broker Paige Martin breaks down Houston’s housing market and explains the average salary needed to purchase a home in neighborhoods and suburban areas across the region. 

Salaries needed to buy a Houston home in 2022 increased “quite a bit” since last year, Martin wrote in an email to the Chronicle. Despite the rising price tag, Martin said it’s important to point out Houston’s affordability compared to other cities. 

“It’s 26 percent cheaper to live in Houston compared to the 20 biggest cities in the U.S.,” Martin said. 

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Martin and her team analyzed median single-family home prices across more than 50 Houston neighborhoods to determine salary requirements to own a home in each respective area. The data listed below is current as of Jan. 31, 2022. 

In order to calculate salary requirements, Martin's team used the assumption that a buyer would have a 20 percent down payment on a 30-year mortgage, 3.05 percent interest rate, an effective tax rate of 2.54 percent, annual insurance costs of .5 percent and no private mortgage insurance.

Another assumption her team followed was that homeowners could spend a maximum of 28 percent of their salary on their monthly costs (principal, interest, taxes & insurance costs) to be able to comfortably afford a home.

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The report cited several suburbs with top-rated school districts as areas that have seen tremendous growth, including Katy, The Woodlands, Fulshear and Pearland. 

Of the 52 neighborhoods that were analyzed, the most affordable is Five Corners, which boasts a $215,000 median home price and a $53,000 salary requirement. The most expensive neighborhood is River Oaks, which boasts a $2,365,000 median home price that requires a $556,000 salary. 

See below for the annual salary needed to purchase a home in Houston-area neighborhoods and the suburbs: 

Houston-area neighborhoods

River Oaks
Median home price: $2,365,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $556,000

Tanglewood
Median home price: $1,725,000
Estimated annual salary needed: $405,000

Memorial Park
Median home price: $1,367,000
Estimated annual salary needed: $321,000

West University
Median home price: $1,395,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $317,000

Highland Village
Median home price: $1,098,935   
Estimated annual salary needed: $256,000

Bellaire
Median home price: $940,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $216,000

Rice/Museum District
Median home price: $875,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $204,000

Memorial West
Median home price: $837,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $198,000

Montrose
Median home price: $679,900   
Estimated annual salary needed: $162,000

The Heights
Median home price: $559,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $134,000 

Washington East/Sabine     
Median home price: $457,400   
Estimated annual salary needed: $110,000

Meyerland     
Median home price: $422,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $99,000

Midtown     
Median home price: $335,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $98,000

Energy Corridor     
Median home price: $382,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $91,000

Downtown
Median home price: $253,500
Estimated annual salary needed: $93,000

Galleria
Median home price: $285,000
Estimated annual salary needed: $82,000

Gulfton     
Median home price: $220,000
Estimated annual salary needed: $59,000

Alief
Median home price: $226,100
Estimated annual salary needed: $54,000

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Houston-area suburbs

The Woodlands   
Median home price: $480,000
Estimated annual salary needed: $115,000

Fulshear     
Median home price: $380,000
Estimated annual salary needed: $101,000

Sugar Land     
Median home price: $400,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $96,000

Cypress     
Median home price: $355,000
Estimated annual salary needed: $91,000

Tomball
Median home price: $350,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $89,000

Katy
Median home price: $349,900   
Estimated annual salary needed: $88,000

Pearland     
Median home price: $324,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $82,000

Friendswood         
Median home price: $332,500
Estimated annual salary needed: $78,000

Spring/Klein
Median home price: $298,950   
Estimated annual salary needed: $74,000

Kingwood     
Median home price: $289,450   
Estimated annual salary needed: $71,000

Humble
Median home price: $229,000   
Estimated annual salary needed: $58,000