Housing Affordability Holds Steady in CA

Housing affordability in California stood at 16% in July, unchanged from the level recorded in June but down from 19% a year earlier, according to the California Association of Realtors.The Housing Affordability Index indicates the percentage of households that can afford to buy a median-priced home in California, which cost $540,900 in July. The minimum household income needed to buy a median-priced home was $125,670, up from $109,170 a year earlier, CAR said. (The figures are based on an average effective mortgage rate of 5.73%, assuming a 20% downpayment.) CAR can be found on the Web at http://www.car.org.