This East Bay city ranked worst in the U.S. for first-time homebuyers
A home is listed for sale on upper Broadway in Oakland, Calif. on Saturday, Nov. 14, 2020.
OAKLAND, Calif. - A new analysis ranked Oakland the worst city in the U.S. for first-time homebuyers. The East Bay city was one of several in the region at the bottom of the list.
"High monthly mortgage payments and high crime rates put Oakland, California, last on our list," the customer review site ConsumerAffairs said in its analysis. The site is a consumer news platform and not affiliated with any government agencies.
The site reviewed almost a dozen metrics related to affordability, market strength, and quality of life across the country’s 150 largest cities.
By the numbers:
Oakland came in last place with a median home sales price of $1,114,287.
The total monthly payment, with 20% down payment, came to $7,170, according to the findings.
The homeownership rate for the millennial, Generation Z population was 11.7%.
Affordability, which was based on home price to income ration, was 11.4.
The violent crime rate per 1,000 people was 35.65. The rate for property crime per 1,000 people was 100.03.
Big picture view:
Compare that with the best city for first-time homebuyers— Chesapeake, Virginia, which had a median home sales price of $323,932 and a monthly payment of $2,318 (with 20% down payment).
The homeownership rate for Millennials and Gen Zs was 23.9%.
The affordability ratio was 3.4.
As far as crime rates, Chesapeake had a 4.17 for violent crime and an 18.26 for property crime.
Other low-ranking Bay Area cities:
San Jose ranked only slightly better than Oakland, taking the 148th slot after Los Angeles.
San Francisco came in 146th place.
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"Not one of these cities has a monthly mortgage payment under $4,500 — and some, including Oakland and San Francisco, stretch above the $7,000 range," ConsumerAffairs researchers wrote. "With prices this high, young buyers struggle to get into the market."
Also among the worst were Fremont (135) which was preceded by Santa Rosa (134).
Bottom of the list
134. Santa Rosa
135. Fremont
136. Jersey City, NJ
137. Huntington Beach, CA
138. Oxnard, CA
139. Yonkers, NY
140. Anaheim, CA
141. Santa Ana, CA
142. New York, NY
143. Long Beach, CA
144. Glendale, CA
145. Honolulu, HI
146. San Francisco
147. Los Angeles
148. San Jose
149. Newark, New Jersey
150. Oakland
(Source: ConsumerAffairs)
"The worst cities for first-time homebuyers have two major things in common: high median home prices and low affordability," the customer review site said.
No Bay Area cities in top 100
No Bay Area cities cracked the top 100 for best cities for new homeowners, though the Central California cities of Bakersfield (22), Modesto (65), and Fresno (74) did.
Best cities for first-time homebuyers
"The five best cities for first-time homebuyers all boast affordable monthly payments, a bustling housing market and opportunities for millennial and Generation Z buyers," the customer review site said.
The five best cities for first-time prospective homebuyers were:
1. Chesapeake, VA
2. Virginia Beach, VA
3. Fort Wayne, IN
4. Aurora, IL
5. Gilbert, AZ
As part of its research, ConsumersAffairs used resources including 2023 U.S. Census Bureau figures, community analytic site NeighborhoodScout, and data from real estate website Zillow.
Researchers gave each city an overall score based on 11 metrics, including median home sales price, total monthly payment with 20% down, home price to income ratio, homeownership rate for Millennials/Gen Z, and percentage of population living within a 10-minute walk of green space.
The findings come as the number of first-time homebuyers sank to a historic low last year.
"First-time buyers face high home prices, high mortgage interest rates and limited inventory," National Association of Realtors' (NAR) Jessica Lautz said.
NAR said first-time home-buyers made up only 24% of the market share. The median age for homebuyers was 56 years old.
"That’s not exactly friendly to young new buyers," ConsumerAffairs said.
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