California the Toughest State for First-Time Homebuyers

NEW YORK, Feb. 28, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- California is the toughest state for first-time homebuyers, according to a new Bankrate.com report. Hawaii and New York round out the three most difficult states to buy your first home. The data study evaluated all 50 U.S. states based on several factors pertaining to young adults, including home affordability relative to median income, credit availability, unemployment, market tightness and homeownership percentage among under-35 households. Click here for more information:

http://www.bankrate.com/finance/real-estate/best-worst-states-for-first-time-homebuyers.aspx

California ranks as the toughest state for first-time homebuyers for several reasons, including low home affordability (#49), availability (#49) and U-35 homeownership percentage (#49), as well as high millennial unemployment (#41).

Iowa, on the other hand, is the easiest state due in large part to the most affordable home prices in the country. The Hawkeye State also graded highly for U-35 homeownership (#2) and millennial employment (#10). Utah, Minnesota, Kansas and Missouri comprise the rest of the five easiest states for first-time homebuyers.

"Tight market conditions and unaffordably high prices really plague what many young Americans feel are the most desirable places to put down roots," said Bankrate.com analyst Claes Bell. "On the other hand, the availability of FHA loans that allow down payments of as little as 3.5% may make it easier to buy a home in high-priced markets than you think."

Sources: CoreLogic, National Association of Realtors, American Community Survey (U.S. Census Bureau), Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (FFIEC), Bureau of Labor Statistics

About Bankrate.com:

Bankrate.com provides consumers with the expert advice and tools needed to succeed throughout life's financial journey. For over two decades, Bankrate.com has been a leading personal finance destination. The company offers award-winning editorial content, competitive rate information, and calculators and tools across multiple categories, including mortgages, deposits, credit cards, retirement, automobile loans, and taxes. Bankrate aggregates rate information from over 4,800 institutions on more than 300 financial products. With coverage of over 600 local markets, Bankrate generates rate tables in all 50 U.S. states. Bankrate develops and provides web services to more than 100 cobranded websites with online partners, including some of the most trusted and frequently visited personal finance sites on the internet, such as Comcast, Yahoo!, CNBC and Bloomberg. In addition, Bankrate licenses editorial content to more than 500 newspapers on a daily basis including The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times.

For more information:

Ryan Feldman
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917-368-8637

SOURCE Bankrate.com

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