Using data from the listing, the basic 80% monthly mortgage payment is about $4k per month. Add to that about $800 per month in real estate taxes and say, $250/month in home insurance. So about $5k per month post tax income just for the house and escrow account payment.
At the standard 30% of gross income for the home payment, and you are looking at an annual household income between ... say, $225 to $250k? Not exactly starter home middle class for most of America.
Increase the percentage going out to the home payment and the required household income goes down. At 50%, you are still needing well north of $100k+ annual household income. This is possible for a two earner family (made up of either college graduates or high skill workers (or both)) with each making about $70k (or more) per annum.
With so much of the family income devoted to the home payment (@$59k/year), the question is: Do you own the house or does the house own you?
Interestingly, the Zillow estimated monthly rental for the home makes it a better deal to rent the home than own it. A better deal by well over a thousand dollars per month, I might add. Something’s off.
As a side note, it would be interesting to see the real estate tax assessment history for the property and find out how much the lot and the structure each have been valued at over time.
Yes - starting to realize that homeownership in this country is a tad overrated (especially if we happen to be in bubbles such as the one we are in now).
What’s particularly astounding from your calculation is that the necessary income required to afford this home is almost identical to the home’s last sale price ($300k in October 2007).