$78,000 income now required to buy a starter home, up from $43,000 in 2019, as supply deficit narrows from 2022 peak

The income threshold to buy a starter home in the United States has reached $78,000, according to a Realtor.com report published July 20, 2026, up from $43,000 in 2019. National starter home inventory remains roughly 300,000 units below 2019 levels. The shortage peaked in 2022 and has since begun to ease.

Income requirement and supply gap in focus

Realtor.com's report places two figures at the center of the starter home picture. The income floor has climbed $35,000 since 2019. The inventory shortfall sits at roughly 300,000 homes relative to that same baseline year. Those two readings are pulling in opposite directions: supply is recovering from the 2022 peak, while the income requirement has not retreated from its elevated position.

The 2022 marker matters. That year represents when the national starter home shortage hit its worst point. Realtor.com's data indicates the count of available homes has improved since then. The deficit exists, but it is narrower than it was at the peak.

What it means for the setup

Starter home conditions present a split picture. Inventory is moving in the right direction. The income floor, at $78,000, sits well above the $43,000 level recorded in 2019. For capital tracking first-time buyer activity, the open question is whether continued inventory recovery eventually puts downward pressure on the required income level. The current Realtor.com data does not offer that answer.

The report was issued from Austin, Texas on July 20, 2026, via PR Newswire.

What to watch

The next Realtor.com update on the income threshold and the inventory count is the confirmable data point. The 2022 peak in the shortage is a fixed reference on the tape. Whether continued supply additions close the affordability gap is what this setup leaves unresolved.