ST. LOUIS – Whether you’re a first-time or experienced homebuyer, many things must often fall into place to officially purchase a home. One potential game-changer? Your income.

In a time where high interest rates and heavy demand continue to shape the housing market, the process of buying a home has become quite expensive.

A new housing report from Realtor.com estimates that you’ll need a household income of at least six figures to comfortably purchase a median home in America. To be precise: $116,000.

There are a few metros, including St. Louis, where you still may be able to afford a home with a household income under six figures. Realtor.com ranks St. Louis among the Top 10 U.S. metros with the “lowest required income [needed] to purchase [a] median home.”

That begs the question: How much money do you need to make to afford a median home in the St. Louis region?

According to Realtor.com, prospective homebuyers in the St. Louis metropolitan area need a household income of $82,000.

The median home price is considered the value of the home priced in the middle of all available listings for a particular market. Realtor.com estimates that St. Louis’ median home listing price, as of April 2024, was $294,000.

Based on the two figures above for the St. Louis metro, your salary would need to be around 28% of the median home price in order to afford a home around other financial considerations, such as loans and mortgage payments.

For what it’s worth, a lower income than $82,000 would stretch further in only five major U.S. metros compared to St. Louis. Realtor.com says an income of $67,000 would pass for a median home in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which was considered the easiest major metro to purchase a median home.