Homes up for sale across the US carried a median $431,250 price tag in April Housing affordability is a major consideration when purchasing a home that often varies based on the market in which homebuyers are looking to purchase. In its "April Housing Trends Report," Realtor.com identified the markets in the U.S. in which buyers need to make the most money to be able to buy a median-priced home. While five of the metro areas in the top 10 could be found in California, locales in several other states also demanded big incomes, according to the real estate marketplace. ISSUES REMAIN Homebuyers in each of the 10 metro areas that ranked among Realtor.com’s areas "with the highest required incomes to afford a home" all needed to take home at least six figures, with the San-Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, California market taking the top spot. In April, homes in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara market had median prices of nearly $1.4 million, according to Realtor.com. It pegged the income needed to buy such a home at just over $370,000, more than any other market it looked at. This housing market, which is ranked No. 2, is also located in Northern California. Homebuyers needed to pocket about $263,000 a year to bear the expense of the market’s $995,000 median listing price in April, the report found. Of the metros in the top 10 for highest required income, the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim market saw the biggest jump – 86% – from 2019 to a take-home of nearly $315,900, Realtor.com reported. The median home there cost $1.195 million in April. San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad ranked as the market requiring the third-highest income from homebuyers, with over $258,900 in income needed for the median $979,500, per the report. Compared to a year ago, the median price of a home in the area in April dropped 6.7%. Tacoma is located south of Seattle, while Bellevue sits to the east of the city. To purchase a median-priced $782,225 home in this market, homebuyers had to make nearly $206,800, according to Realtor.com. The Boston-Cambridge-Newton market saw its median listing price rise 0.9% year-over-year to hit $878,000 in April, per the report. Getting a home there takes a roughly $232,100 income. Boston, home to over 673,000 people, posted a 20.1% year-over-year jump in newly-listed homes in April, Realtor.com also found. Affording the median for a home in and around the Big Apple and across the Hudson River in New Jersey necessitated an income of almost $208,700 in April, the report indicated. The market’s required income has jumped 69.4% since April 2019. Denver serves as the capital of the Centennial State. Its housing market, and nearby Aurora and Centennial, had a median asking price of $599,450, meaning homebuyers there would have to make over $158,400 to be financially capable of getting approval to purchase a residence, according to Realtor.com. Realtor.com found the market, which includes the Golden State’s capital, has a median $633,570 price tag and the income required for such properties to be nearly $167,500. Homes typically sat on the market for 38 days there in April. The District of Columbia, Arlington and Alexandria are among some of the cities that fall within the so-called "DMV" (District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia) area encompassing the nation’s capital. The Washington-Arlington-Alexandria market, boasting homes listed at a median of nearly $623,000, requires earnings of about $164,680, the report said. Nationwide, homebuyers had to pocket incomes of $114,000 to be able to be financially capable of buying a home, according to Realtor.com. It used a 30-year fixed mortgage, a 20% down payment and maximum spending of 30% of gross monthly income to calculate that figure. Homes up for sale across the U.S. carried a median price tag of $431,250 in April, according to its data. The report said the income needed to buy a median home in the U.S. has jumped 70.1% in the last six years compared to six years.

A National Association of Realtors economist said 'there is this middle-income paradox' Housing affordability and supply have been ongoing challenges for many Americans as they look to buy homes. A newly released report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and Realtor.com found that nationwide inventory has gone up compared to last year as of March, but "access to affordable homes remains out of reach for many buyers." Among the income levels that the report looked at, middle-income buyers with $75,000 in annual pay saw the biggest year-over-year increase in the share of homes listed on the market that they are financially able to purchase, with it going from 20.8% in March 2024 to 21.2% this year. At the same time, that remains 27.6 percentage points lower than the share in pre-pandemic 2019 and 26.9 percentage points short of what they should be capable of buying in a balanced market, according to the NAR and Realtor.com’s "Housing Affordability & Supply" report. Middle-income buyers have an "affordability gap" of more than 415,900 homes priced below $254,780, the report said. "This income group, middle-income buyers, face the largest shortage of affordable listings," NAR Senior Economist and Director of Real Estate Research Nadia Evangelou told FOX Business in an interview. "So middle-income buyers gained the most, and that’s very encouraging, yet still have the furthest to go, so there is this middle-income paradox, like biggest gains and biggest gaps." Upper-middle-income buyers also saw the share of homes up for sale that they can afford go up from March 2024 — rising 0.2 percentage points to hit 37.1% — but like middle-income earners, there is still a big deficit of affordable homes for them. According to the report, a balanced market should have 742,870 homes with prices manageable for them, meaning nearly 363,700 homes sporting price tags of $339,700 or lower are necessary. As for low-income buyers, Evangelou said there has been "no improvement" in the share of listings on the market that income group can afford. Households with annual incomes of $50,000, $35,000, $25,000 and less than $15,000 all contended with the share of listings they can bear the expense of shrinking between March 2024 and March of this year, the report showed. For example, the proportion of up-for-sale homes accessible to homebuyers who make $50,000 decreased 0.7 percentage points year-over-year, hitting just 8.7%. The report said $50,000 income earners "should be able to afford to buy one-in-three listings if the market were in balance." Evangelou said that while national inventory posted a 20% increase from March last year, the country is "still far away from where we need to be." She said more homes need to come on the market. Evangelou noted there has been an "interesting shift" in home builders constructing smaller homes, something that she said was a "development in the right direction" and that can "help having more choices at price points" that income groups like middle-income buyers can afford. "More homes alone won’t fix the affordability crisis, not unless they are priced right, so we need to better match between what’s being built and what people can afford," she told FOX Business. "That means also rethinking local zoning, incentivizing smaller and more modest homes, supporting builders and expanding access to financing tools like down payment assistance." The NAR and Realtor.com "2025 Housing Affordability & Supply" report also looked at how the largest metropolitan areas and states have been doing in terms of housing affordability and supply. Of the 100 metro areas examined, the report found 30% were "areas getting closer to balance" for affordable home supply across income levels, while 44% saw "areas stuck in the middle" with "misaligned but not at crisis level" housing supply and demand, according to NAR. The other 26% of the metros saw housing affordability weaken. Iowa, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois and West Virginia stood out as the five states home to housing markets "closest" to balanced, while Montana, Idaho, California, Massachusetts and Hawaii were found to be those with the "largest shortfall of affordable listings." "If we want a housing market that works for everyone, not just the top earners, we need to be intentional about what we build, where we build it, and who we are building it for," Evangelou said, noting the needs can be "totally different" depending on the location. In January, a separate survey released by Realtor.com found many U.S. adults – 75% – still consider homeownership to be a component of the American Dream.

Corcoran purchased the home more than 20 years after she first saw it Corcoran Group founder and "Shark Tank" star Barbara Corcoran has put her Upper East Side penthouse up for sale. The duplex penthouse, which Corcoran just recently put on the market, is located within a building nestled in the Carnegie Hill neighborhood of Manhattan, a stone’s throw from Central Park, The New York Times first reported Tuesday. It sports a $12 million asking price, according to its listing with Corcoran brokers Scott Stewart and Carrie Chiang. "Real estate is always emotional, but I never thought I’d say goodbye to this beautiful palace in the sky," the "Shark Tank" star wrote Friday on Instagram. "I’m just hoping the special person who buys it cherishes it as much as I do!" Corcoran paid $10 million to acquire the penthouse in 2015, roughly 23 years after the businesswoman first encountered it while doing a messenger side-gig and becoming enamored with it, according to the Times. At the time, Corcoran was struggling to get her real estate business off the ground. She asked the owner in 1992 to let her know if it ever went up for sale and, finally in 2015, the opportunity for Corcoran to purchase it arrived. At that point, she was well into her successful business career and had the money to buy her dream home. While Corcoran owned it, the penthouse underwent significant renovations. The residence has nearly 3,800 square feet spanning two floors. Its living space includes four bedrooms, four full-bathrooms, two half-bathrooms and other rooms, the listing said. The living room on the penthouse's first floor "features five oversized windows, soaring ceilings, a wood-burning fireplace, and elegant custom moldings," per the listing. From many of the penthouse’s rooms, "sweeping views" of Central Park and the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir are present, the listing said. A library and service wing are among some of the home’s other offerings. On the second floor, there is a glass solarium dining room that, according to the Times, had previously been a greenhouse. The listing touted the solarium as an "unparalleled space to host dinner parties" with a seating area for "everyday meals." Beside the solarium is a large outdoor terrace. Corcoran said in an Instagram post that she and husband Bill Higgins "have decided a one-story home would better suit us, and it’s time to begin our next chapter," prompting them to put the penthouse up for sale. She told the Times the home’s staircase has posed difficulty for Higgins. Corcoran established the Corcoran Group in 1973 using a $1,000 loan, according to the real estate company’s website. She sold it to NRT Inc. in 2001, taking home $66 million. She has been a "shark" on the popular TV show "Shark Tank" for many years. In an Instagram post last fall, Corcoran marked 16 years on the show, sharing some insights she has learned from it. "Here’s to 16 beautiful years of Shark Tank!" she wrote. "It’s hard to imagine that a decade and a half has flown by; it feels both like a whirlwind and a blink of an eye."

The house goes up for sale after Michelle Obama dismissed divorce rumors A multimillion-dollar estate the Obama family stayed at several times during trips to Martha’s Vineyard is up for sale. The owners, identified as architect Norman Foster and his family, are looking to get $39 million for the massive Blue Heron Farm on the Massachusetts island, The Wall Street Journal reported April 25. MGS Group Real Estate’s Maggie Gold Seelig and Corcoran Property Advisors’ Brian Dougherty are listing the property on the seller’s behalf, according to the outlet. Blue Heron Farm spans 30 acres in Chilmark, Massachusetts. The main house consists of approximately 7,000 square feet, according to the Journal. On the estate, there is a separate guesthouse with five bedrooms. The estate also includes a large barn and a boat house, according to the outlet. Amenities for an active lifestyle are also present on the property, including a basketball court, tennis court and riding rings. Under the Foster family's ownership, Blue Heron Farm has undergone renovations. Its main house got a revamp, with a pool and nearby pool house also being constructed by the family, the Journal reported Blue Heron Farm has belonged to the Fosters since 2011. President Barack Obama, his wife Michelle Obama and their family stayed at the Martha’s Vineyard estate during the summers of 2009, 2010 and 2011, paying to rent it from its previous owners before the Fosters, the Journal reported. The former president and first lady’s marriage has been the subject of rumors in recent months, but Michelle Obama has slapped down speculation about a possible divorce. She told "The Diary of a CEO" podcast hosts Steven Bartlett and Craig Robinson, her brother, who appeared on the same episode, that "if I were having problems with my husband, everybody would know about it." "I’m not a martyr. I’m not, you know," she said, adding she "would be problem-solving in public" if their marriage was on the rocks. At an earlier point in the interview, Michelle said Barack "is, as the young people say it, he is my person." The Obamas have been married since 1992. Barack and Michelle Obama served in the White House from January 2009 to January 2017.

The home in Naples, Florida, is the most expensive non-beachfront property sold in the county A roughly 17,000-square-foot home in Naples, Florida, was scooped up in a recent eight-figure transaction, setting a record for the county in the process. The mansion, located in the wealthy Port Royal neighborhood of Naples, went for a whopping $85 million, according to The Agency Naples and Gulf Coast International Properties. The Agency Naples’ Chris Resop and Gulf Coast International Properties’ Timothy Savage were both involved in the deal, representing the seller and buyer. According to a press release, the property’s $85 million sale price marked the "highest price for a non-beachfront single-family residence" in Collier County, a county on the Gulf in southwestern Florida that’s home to Naples and over 416,000 people. The home, built on 2¼ lots, boasts eight bedrooms and 10½ bathrooms. It was "designed for grand-scale entertaining with spacious open living spaces throughout," the press release said. Inside the home, a large formal living room with coffered ceilings flows into a sleek kitchen and a nearby family room. There is a dining room with a neighboring glass-paneled wine room. The mansion includes home theater with a massive screen. While the home doesn’t sit on the beach, it does have 250 feet of water frontage on Naples Bay. The "breathtaking water views" are present in "nearly every room" of the house, according to the press release. A pool in the backyard also offers a way to cool off in the sunny Florida weather. David Hoffman was identified as the buyer of the $85 million property. He founded and chairs Hoffman Family of Companies, a Naples-based firm that has businesses in a number of industries ranging from real estate and manufacturing to transportation and hospitality. He has a personal fortune of $2 billion, according to Forbes. Naples is well-known for being a wealthy enclave, particularly its Port Royal neighborhood. Other cities in Florida are also home to the very wealthy, such as Palm Beach. "Palm Beach in general has more wealth than Naples, but this is due to its size and large concentration of ultra-high-net-worth individuals," Resop told FOX Business. "Naples is a smaller town than Palm Beach with one of the highest per capita incomes in the U.S. Both are some of the wealthiest cities in the country though." He said Naples has been "undervalued for years." "Some of our older cities in America, such as Palm Beach and Beverly Hills, have always been recognized for their real estate values and more wealth. But, in recent years, Naples has really come on strong and is proving its value along with quality of life with a smaller town feel," Resop said. Naples "continues to rise as one of the top luxury markets in the U.S.," he added. The city saw 72 sales of ultra-luxury homes of at least $10 million over the last year, a report from Compass found. Those sales were worth $1.02 billion combined. A roughly 15-acre beachfront estate in Naples recently went for $225 million. That transaction became the second priciest home purchase ever in the country, The Wall Street Journal recently reported. It also notched a record for the Sunshine State. The priciest sale ever in the U.S. occurred in 2019. That deal, worth $238 million, was for a home in a New York skyscraper, according to the outlet.

Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales takes aim at regulations, red tape Realtor.com CEO Damian Eales weighed in on what measures are needed to address America’s housing crisis, taking particular aim at excessive regulation. The U.S. has been contending with affordability and supply issues in its housing market for some time, making it difficult for people to purchase homes. "America is in a state of gridlock in terms of housing transactions where we’re really, for the last two years we’ve been hitting 30-year lows," Eales said during a recent "Mornings with Maria" appearance. "That’s largely because of high interest rates. Most American mortgages – in fact, 70% of American mortgages – are below 5%, so prevailing rates are closer to 6.8%, perhaps even going up shortly. Sellers are very reluctant to sell because they’re going to have to refinance at a much higher cost." High costs of homes compared to income have also made it challenging for people to enter the market, the Realtor.com CEO said. In the U.S., there is a supply gap of 3.8 million homes as well, according to a report released by Realtor.com in March. Eales said Realtor.com was "optimistic that all of the moving parts of the economy will fall into place such that there can be easing of mortgage rates." The 30-year fixed mortgage rate came in at 6.81% on average the week of April 24, according to Freddie Mac. "But I would say that even if mortgage rates were to drop substantially, that would free up the market, but it certainly wouldn’t address this issue of a lack of supply, which the president is also trying to address in terms of freeing up federal lands," Eales remarked The Trump administration’s Joint Task Force on Federal Land for Housing was unveiled in March. The goal is to pinpoint "underutilized" federal lands that could be "suitable" for housing development as well as make land transfer processes smoother and promote measures to boost affordable housing, according to a memorandum of understanding. "It’s not just an issue for federal policymakers," Eales said. "This is really an issue for state and local governments to free up the ability to build those homes." He said federal and local governments need to ease regulations and get rid of costly red tape to help with housing affordability and supply. "It is estimated that one-quarter of the cost of any new home in this country is due to red tape, so freeing up regulations. I think environmental regulations in many states throughout the country have been really weaponized to just prevent development of any type. That has to be addressed," the Realtor.com CEO said. "And I think that a combination of that and looking at zoning regulations that prevent multifamily developments," he continued. "Now, you don’t want multifamily developments in every neighborhood in the country, but around public transport stations, you do want multifamily developments. That would ease the housing crisis that exists today." He told "Mornings with Maria" there were "a bunch of other areas" of regulation that could also be changed, giving an example of some rent seekers who "take advantage of the planning process." "That’s not a federal government issue, that’s a local government issue, and it’s a state government issue," Eales said. "So it’s one thing for the Feds to free up federal lands, but it has to come at a bipartisan sense with local and state government reducing regulation and wanting growth in their economy." His appearance on "Mornings with Maria" came the same day that Realtor.com bestowed letter grades on America’s 50 states and Washington, D.C., in its "Grading the States: Affordability & Homebuilding Report Cards" report. Only three states – South Carolina, Iowa and Texas – earned scores in the A range when it came to affordability and their "ability to meet future supply challenges through new construction," according to Realtor.com. Meanwhile, seven states got an "F" in the report, with New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island at the very bottom. The others with that letter grade were identified as Oregon, Connecticut, California and Hawaii. Eales indicated he thought regulations were hampering affordability and homebuilding in some states toward the bottom of the ranking. "I think it’s also a growth mindset," he added. "I think that the South and the Midwest have a, generally speaking, those states have a real growth mindset, they want new housing development." For March, the National Association of Realtors pegged the median price of existing single-family homes at $408,000. New single-family homes purchased in March had a median price of $403,600, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Fort Lauderdale, Florida, property has an asking price of nearly $29M A home with room for seven cars in its garages is on the market in South Florida. The waterfront property, situated in sunny Fort Lauderdale, carries a price tag of just shy of $29 million, according to its listing with Douglas Elliman’s Julie Jones. The Modern Mediterranean-style main house boasts nearly 7,700 square feet of living space. It features a total of five bedrooms, with six full bathrooms scattered throughout. It underwent an extensive remodel and expansion about 13 years ago. The listing said the home contains "custom detailing & high quality finishes." It is replete with a chef’s kitchen that has access to a 2,000-square-foot covered outdoor living area. In a separate bar area within the home, there is a large fish tank. A formal living room offers plenty of seating in front of a fireplace. Views of the Intracoastal Waterway, which runs some 3,000 miles along the Atlantic coast, can be found throughout the home, according to its listing. There is also a separate 2,300-square-foot guest house on the 0.82-acre estate. It was constructed in 2018, the listing said. Between the main house and the guest house, its garages offer space for seven vehicles, a key design choice driven by the seller’s love of cars, Douglas Elliman said. A large pool pavilion and an 18-seat bar are among some of its outdoor offerings. It also offers the opportunity for al fresco dining with a covered outdoor dining area. The property boasts two pools, one of which is just steps away from the outdoor dining area and bar. It comes with nearly 330 feet of water frontage, with two separate docks providing access to the water and boating. The ZIP code in which the home is located has homes with asking prices of up to $31 million, according to data on Realtor.com’s website. The median sale price was $1.2 million. More than 184,200 people call Fort Lauderdale home, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

South Carolina, Texas, Indiana rank highest in terms of affordability and homebuilding, new survey says Some states are faring better than others when it comes to housing affordability and homebuilding, according to a new report from Realtor.com. The online real estate marketplace bestowed letter grades on America’s 50 states and Washington, D.C., in its "Grading the States: Affordability & Homebuilding Report Cards" report. Only three earned As. Realtor.com looked at "housing affordability and the ability to meet future supply challenges through new construction" in determining how the states overall performed. "Our state report card rankings reveal stark disparities in housing affordability and homebuilding efforts across the U.S.," Realtor.com chief economist Danielle Hale said in a statement. "While some states are leading the way with strong homebuilding activity, others are grappling with high housing prices and sluggish construction." The report comes as American homebuyers have contended with affordability issues for quite some time. The U.S. is also staring down a supply gap of 3.8 million homes, according to Realtor.com. The following five states had the highest grades in the Realtor.com report: In top-ranked South Carolina, homes had median asking prices of $354,429, with households earning a median income of $64,989. The state’s "proactive homebuilding efforts" helped it achieve the sole "A" grade for affordability and homebuilding, the report said. Iowa boasted the highest Realtors Affordability Score at 0.92 out of 2. It saw a median price of $294,600, while its new construction premium came in at 58.4%, according to Realtor.com. The report attributed the Lone Star State’s A- (one of just two on the ranking) to its "impressive new construction." It was home to a permit-to-population ratio of 1.67 and was responsible for 15.3% of new construction permits in 2024, Realtor.com found. Indiana notched an overall score of 69.9 out of 100 for affordability and homebuilding, leading to it ranking No. 3 with a B+. The median asking price in North Carolina clocked in at $408,663, according to the report. It had "strong affordability and homebuilding activity," Realtor.com said. The largest share of states fell within the C-range for affordability and homebuilding, with six landing a C+, 14 getting a C and nine earning a C-, the report showed. Washington, D.C. also received a C-. Southern and Midwestern states made up the B range. Seven states – Oregon, Connecticut, California, Hawaii, New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island – got an "F" for affordability and homebuilding in Realtor.com’s report. According to an April 3 report from Realtor.com, homes across the country listed for a median price of $424,900 in March. That was flat year over year, but still 38.9% higher than March 2019. A separate survey released in late January by NerdWallet found about 15% of Americans intend to make a home purchase this year.

Homes in the DC region were listed at a median sale price of $630K, according to real estate agency "For sale" signs are popping up everywhere near Washington, D.C., following the Trump administration’s federal shakeup. Compared to this time last year, the number of active home listings in the nation’s capital shot up by almost 47%, according to FOX5 DC, citing data from real estate agency Bright MLS. In March alone, records tracked 6,000 new listings and almost 5,000 new pending contracts in the D.C. area, according to Bright MLS Chief Economist Lisa Sturtevan, the outlet reported. Sturtevan told the outlet that the rise in inventory has been great for the real estate market as listings were previously at "historically low levels." "Inventory has just been so tight here in the Washington area," Sturtevant said. "More inventory coming onto the market is a good thing for the market." Median sale prices last week in the D.C. region were listed at $630,000, according to Bright MLS. While prices may remain high, FOX5 reported one home that was only on the market for 41 days saw a price drop of $45,000. The rise in new listings has been fueled by the area’s high concentration of federal employees impacted by the Trump administration’s new policies, FOX Business previously reported, citing Redfin agents. The Department of Government Efficiency, which aimed to eliminate wasteful government spending by trimming the federal workforce, has slashed thousands of jobs across agencies such as the Department of Health and Human Services and the Internal Revenue Service. In addition, buyout offers were accepted by nearly 75,000 employees, Fox News Digital previously reported. Return-to-office mandates have also affected the real estate market. FOX Business previously reported that a D.C.-area couple who had to return to the office sought to list their home in the hopes of finding another home closer to public transportation. The abundance of homes for sale presents an opportunistic moment for buyers. While new listings have increased dramatically, the housing market is still performing below pre-pandemic levels, Sturtevant said. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser also said she believes the capital’s real estate market still has room to grow, according to the outlet. "I remain very optimistic about the downtown, very bullish about the future of the District of Columbia," Bowser said. "We have laid out a plan, we’ve delivered on the plan, we continue to have people come forward with ideas. We continue to attract partners and continue to make investments."

The asking price of the home stands at $11,988,000 A multimillion-dollar home owned by the man behind Starbucks’ Frappuccino recently went up for sale in Washington State. The property, nestled on Lake Washington in Kirkland, has an asking price of $11,988,000, per its listing with Windermere Real Estate Northeast’s Bryan Loveless, and Realogics Sotheby’s International Realty’s Brian Hopper. Kirkland is located across Lake Washington from Seattle. According to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau, it has a population of 91,000. Property records list Bill Moore as the current owner. The former Starbucks executive was behind the coffee house chain’s Frappuccino drink, the Puget Sound Business Journal reported. It has a "chef’s kitchen" with a "caterer’s wing," according to the listing. A rec room, wine cellar and a guest suite featuring a kitchenette are among some of its other rooms. The main house provides plenty of indoor and outdoor "entertaining areas," as well as decks with stunning views of the surrounding scenery, according to the listing. There is an outdoor patio that includes a pizza oven. According to the listing, a two-bedroom, two-bathroom detached guest house on the property is included. That building is replete with "cathedral ceilings, walls of windows & rooftop deck," it said. The property spans over 14,200 square feet. On its grounds, there is a private upper garden where raised beds are installed and fruit trees are planted, per the listing. The Kirkland home going up for sale last week came after it had previously spent some time on the market last year. Homes in Kirkland had median asking prices of $1.4 million in February, according to Realtor.com. They sold for a median of $1.3 million.