The Salary You’d Need to Afford Each State’s Most Expensive House
If you were planning on winning the lottery and buying yourself a totally elaborate multi-million dollar mansion… all I can say is I’m sorry. (In full disclosure, I did win… $2.) But the time you spent swimming through listings and the feelings you felt for that perfect mansion don’t have to go to waste, right? Is it really so far-fetched that you could one day afford to live there?
Most likely, 100 percent yes… But who am I to say what a human with a goal in mind can and cannot accomplish? In the spirit of fun, I thought it would be fun to find out how much you would need to climb up the corporate ladder (or innovate the next Post-It Note) to be able to have a salary to afford the most expensive home in every state. (Spoiler alert: It’s a lot) And the best part? Along the way we will get to look at some pretty snazzy real estate.
But first a lesson in luxury real estate: The people who are actually buying these homes are usually more likely to pay upfront with all-cash than go the financing route. According to a 2017 article by the Los Angeles Times, 35 percent of homes on the Los Angeles market priced at $2 million or higher were bought with all cash.
So for the other 65 percent who don’t have that much in the bank, it’s a mix of cash and financing—and if a mortgage is good enough for Beyoncé, it’s good enough for me! So, for this fun exercise, let’s get a mortgage using a 20 percent down payment (because that seems reasonable, right?). However, since conforming loans max out at $453,100, in most places, you’re going to need a jumbo loan—a loan that the government doesn’t secure and usually comes with higher interest rates and stricter application requirements. So, using a jumbo mortgage calculator (with a 20 percent down payment and current jumbo mortgage rates of 4.750 percent), here’s a rough estimate of how much you would need to earn yearly to make the monthly payments on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage (based on the guideline that 28 percent of your pre-tax monthly income should go to your mortgage).
Though the monthly payments on these houses look more like yearly salaries than the amount you’d put on a rent check, there are some surprises. Most places require a salary of between $1 and $6 million, but in Alaska, Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota, you don’t even need to break seven figures to buy. However there are a few places, like California and Colorado, where the monthly payment is awfully close to half a million dollars , meaning you’d need to make around $30M a year (~Can you believe?~).
Alabama: You’d need to make $1.25M each year
Alaska: You’d need to make $698K each year
Price: $3.9M
Down payment: $780K
Monthly payment: $16.29K
Arizona: You’d need to make $4.65M each year
Price: $26M
Down payment: $5.2M
Monthly payment: $108.6K
Arkansas: You’d need to make $1.56M each year
Price: $8.7M
Down payment: $1.74M
Monthly payment: $36K
California: You’d need to make $33.65M each year
Price: $188M
Down payment: $37.6M
Monthly payment: $785.1K
Colorado: You’d need to make $26.67M each year
Price: $149M
Down payment: $29.8M
Monthly payment: $622K
Connecticut: You’d need to make $21.48M each year
Price: $120M
Down payment: $24M
Monthly payment: $501K
Delaware: You’d need to make $2.15M each year
Price: $12M
Down payment: $2.4M
Monthly payment: $50K
Florida: You’d need to make $24.88M each year
Price: $139M
Down payment: $27.8M
Monthly payment: $580K
Georgia: You’d need to make $4.47M each year
Price: $25M
Down payment: $5M
Monthly payment: $104K
Hawaii: You’d need to make $12.53M each year
Price: $70M
Down payment: $14M
Monthly payment: $292K
Idaho: You’d need to make $3.58M each year
Price: $20M
Down payment: $4M
Monthly payment: $83.5K
Illinois: You’d need to make $8.95M each year
Price: $50M
Down payment: $10M
Monthly payment: $208.8K
Indiana: You’d need to make $5.37M each year
Price: $30M
Down payment: $6M
Monthly payment: $125K
Iowa: You’d need to make $626.4K each year
Price: $3.5M
Down payment: $700K
Monthly payment; $14.6K
Kansas: You’d need to make $1.42M each year
Price: $7.95M
Down payment: $1.59M
Monthly payment: $33K
Kentucky: You’d need to make $4.47M each year
Price: $25M
Down payment: $5M
Monthly payment: $104.4K
Louisiana: You’d need to make $2.95M each year
Price: $16.5M
Down payment: $3.3M
Monthly payment: $68.9K
Maine: You’d need to make $2.77M each year
Price: $15.5M
Down payment: $3.1M
Monthly payment: $64.7K
Maryland: You’d need to make $2.7M each year
Price: $15.1M
Down payment: $3.02M
Monthly payment: $63K
Massachusetts: You’d need to make $12.35M each year
Price: $69M
Down payment: $13.8M
Monthly payment: $288K
Michigan: You’d need to make $5.19M each year
Price: $29M
Down payment: $5.8M
Monthly payment: $121.1K
Minnesota: You’d need to make $2.67M each year
Price: $14.895M
Down payment: $2.979M
Monthly payment: $62K
Mississippi: You’d need to make $1.16M each year
Missouri: You’d need to make $1.34M each year
Price: $7.5M
Down payment: $1.5M
Monthly payment: $31.3K
Montana: You’d need to make $5.9M each year
Price: $33M
Down payment: $6.6M
Monthly payment: $137.8K
Nebraska: You’d need to make $671.1K each year
Price: $3.75M
Down payment: $750K
Monthly payment: $15.7K
Nevada: You’d need to make $13.42M each year
Price: $75M
Down payment: $15M
Monthly payment: $313.2K
New Hampshire: You’d need to make $3.19M each year
Price: $17.8M
Down payment: $3.56M
Monthly payment: $74.3K
New Jersey: You’d need to make $5.28M each year
Price: $29.5M
Down payment: $5.9M
Monthly payment: $123.2K
New Mexico: You’d need to make $2.44M each year
Price: $13.65M
Down payment: $2.73M
Monthly payment: $57K
New York: You’d need to make $10.56M each year
Price: $59M
Down payment: $11.8M
Monthly payment: $246.4K
North Carolina: You’d need to make $2.15M each year
Price: $11.99M
Down payment: $2.4M
Monthly payment: $50K
North Dakota: You’d need to make $653.2K each year
Price: $3.65M
Down payment: $730K
Monthly payment: $15.2K
Ohio: You’d need to make $1.74M each year
Price: $9.75M
Down payment: $1.95M
Monthly payment: $40.7K
Oklahoma: You’d need to make $1.21M each year
Price: $6.75M
Down payment: $1.35M
Monthly payment: $28.2K
Oregon: You’d need to make $4.3M each year
Price: $24M
Down payment: $4.8M
Monthly payment: $100.2K
Pennsylvania: You’d need to make $3.38M each year
Price: $18.9M
Down payment: $3.78M
Monthly payment: $78.9K
Rhode Island: You’d need to make $6.98M each year
Price: $39M
Down payment: $7.8M
Monthly payment: $162.9K
South Carolina: You’d need to make $3.58M each year
Price: $20M
Down payment: $4M
Monthly payment: $83.52K
South Dakota: You’d need to make $698K each year
Price: $3.9M
Down payment: $780K
Monthly payment: $16.3K
Tennessee: You’d need to make $3.22M each year
Price: $18M
Down payment: $3.6M
Monthly payment: $75.2K
Texas: You’d need to make $6.89M each year
Price: $38.5M
Down payment: $7.7M
Monthly payment: $160.78K
Utah: You’d need to make $5.37M each year
Price: $30M
Down payment: $6M
Monthly payment: $125.3K
Vermont: You’d need to make $1.96M each year
Price: $10.95M
Down payment: $2.19M
Monthly payment: $45.7K
Virginia: You’d need to make $5.36M each year
Price: $29.95M
Down payment: $5.99M
Monthly payment: $125.1K
Washington: You’d need to make $8.05M each year
Price: $45M
Down payment: $9M
Monthly payment: $187.92K
West Virginia: You’d need to make $2.33M each year
230 Quarry Rdg E, Charleston
Price: $13M
Down payment: $2.6M
Monthly payment: $54.3K
Wisconsin: You’d need to make $2.56M each year
Price: $14.5M
Down payment: $2.9M
Monthly payment: $60.6K
Wyoming: You’d need to make $4.79M each year
Price: $26.76M
Down payment: $5.35M
Monthly payment: $111.75K