See What Your Housing Budget Buys in Every ZIP Code

For homebuyers, setting a realistic budget is a smart step early in the process. Once that's done, narrowing down a neighborhood for your home search gets easier.A new tool from the Realtor.com® economic research team breaks down what share of homes located in each ZIP code would be attainable based on a buyer's budget.To roughly estimate your affordable price range for a home, a common rule of thumb recommends targeting a home that is no more than three to five times your annual income—unless you are bringing significant cash to the table from a prior home sale.Using that guideline, a family making the median household income of $83,700 could afford a home that's priced from around $250,000 on the conservative end, to $418,000 on the most aggressive side. The exact budget would depend on a buyer's down payment, existing debt, and mortgage rates.Nationally, 28% of existing homes would be affordable to buyers with a budget of $250,000, and 58% would be within reach of buyers who are able to spend $418,000, according to the new Realtor.com analysis.However, home values vary greatly across the country, and a buyer with a $250,000 budget will find many more options within their price r...