Fewer Americans are finding their way onto the real estate ladder. A new report from Clever Real Estate finds that the median home price in the U.S. is now $322,494, requiring homeowners to make an annual income of at least $119,769 to afford a 10 percent down payment.  

The price of a home now exceeds the average household earnings of potential homeowners by more than $45,000. Currently, the average annual household income for Americans is $74,755 and Americans would need to earn at least $98,000 to afford a 20 percent down payment, according to the survey. 

The last time a median buyer could put down 20 percent was 1989, 5 percent higher than the current median buyer who can afford around 15 percent. 

Skyrocketing prices have also made it harder to afford to purchase a home, with the average homeowner only able to make a down payment on a home that costs $207,529, 38 percent less than the current median-priced home, according to the survey. To afford a median-priced home in the current market, a homeowner would have to put down 45 percent and mortgage rates would need to be approximately 4 percent. 

The report finds that even with a savings of $1,000 each month, it would take nearly six years to come up with a 20 percent deposit on a home valued at $332,494. These statistics have left more than 61 percent of Americans priced out of the market.

Only four states fell within the affordability of meridian earners including West Virginia, Ohio, Iowa and Indiana. Out of the 50 largest metro areas in the country, only Pittsburgh, Cleveland, St. Louis, Memphis, Indianapolis and Birmingham fall within the affordability range for median earners. 

Los Angeles was named the least affordable city in the country—home buyers would need to earn nearly $250,000 a year to afford a median-priced home, three times the current $87,743 median income for the city. 

According to the National Association of Realtors, overall homeownership has dwindled significantly over the past 40 years, falling from 38 percent in 1981 to 32 percent in 2022.