Howard County News

Howard County posted the 13th lowest home affordability index in Maryland, according to an analysis of 432 counties nationwide by ATTOM Data Solutions in the second quarter.

The county’s affordability index was 134 in the analysis, which found that home prices around the country have hit their lowest level of affordability in a decade.

The report determines the affordability number based on the household income needed to purchase a median-priced home in the county compared to historical data. An index under 100 indicates declining affordability.

In Howard County, a median home costs $390,000. 

“Slowing home price appreciation in the second quarter was not enough to counteract an 11 percent increase in (national) mortgage rates compared to a year ago, resulting in the worst home affordability we’ve seen in nearly 10 years,” said Daren Blomquist, senior vice president at ATTOM Data Solutions. 

Maryland counties with lowest home affordability indexes

County	Q2 2018 Median Sales Price	Annual Income Needed to Buy (3% Down and 28% Front-End DTI)	Annualized Weekly Wages	Pct of Annualized Wages to Buy	Historic  Pct of Wages to Buy	Q2 2018 Affordability Index
Frederick	$282,000	$80,652	$49,972	45.2%	48.8%	108
Prince George's County	$260,000	$69,065	$56,589	34.2%	37.5%	110
Carroll	$305,000	$86,092	$43,407	55.5%	61.5%	111
Montgomery	$429,000	$120,419	$73,450	45.9%	51.1%	111
Charles	$271,500	$75,915	$45,825	46.4%	53.2%	115
Cecil	$195,000	$55,455	$47,398	32.8%	37.7%	115
Anne Arundel	$333,000	$91,666	$57,941	44.3%	51.3%	116
Harford	$235,000	$65,016	$51,389	35.4%	41.7%	118
Washington	$159,900	$44,758	$41,808	30.0%	35.9%	120
Wicomico	$140,000	$38,000	$43,615	24.4%	30.4%	124
Baltimore	$219,000	$61,623	$54,730	31.5%	39.3%	125
Saint Marys	$258,950	$71,207	$66,391	30.0%	38.8%	129
Howard	$390,000	$110,802	$66,170	46.9%	62.6%	134

Source: ATTOM Data Solutions