NAR Picks Top Markets for Renters Seeking Homeownership

The seemingly endless parade of lists of Top 10 markets for some aspect of housing continues, with today’s offering—the best metro area for renters that are financially able to purchase residential property—coming from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

To achieve this list, NAR culled roughly 100 metro areas and number crunched factors including employment growth, household income and qualifying income levels. The result saw a considerable geographical imbalance, with nine of the 10 based in the Midwest and South and three in Ohio.

NAR’s list of the top markets with the highest share of renters who can afford to purchase a home includes Toledo, Ohio (46 percent); Little Rock, Ark. (46 percent); Dayton, Ohio (44 percent); Lakeland, Fla. (41 percent); St. Louis (41 percent); Columbia, S.C. (41 percent); Atlanta (40 percent); Columbus, Ohio (38 percent); Tampa, Fla. (38 percent); and Ogden, Utah (38 percent).

“Even in a time of expanding home sales, steady job growth and historically low mortgage rates, the homeownership rate recently tumbled to its lowest level in over five decades as many renters struggle to juggle escalating rents without commensurate income gains,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “However, this new study reveals that there are several affordable, middle-tier markets with solid job gains and a large segment of renters who earn enough to buy.”