Most-affordable metro areas

1. CUMBERLAND, MD.-WEST VIRGINIA

Median home price: $84,600

Median household income: $45,808

Principal and interest payment: $326 (8.5% of monthly income) Despite their affordability, houses in the Cumberland metro area don’t sell quickly. In February, single-family home listings had been on the market for a median of 146 days, according to Realtor.com. The national median was 84 days.

2. YOUNGSTOWN-WARREN-BOARDMAN, OHIO-PENNSYLVANIA

Median home price: $90,200

Median household income: $44,981

Principal and interest payment: $348 (9.3% of monthly income) Roughly midway between Pittsburgh and Cleveland, Youngstown was once a steel manufacturing powerhouse.

3. PEORIA, ILL.

Median home price: $120,400

Median household income: $57,090

Principal and interest payment: $464 (9.8% of monthly income) Among the five most-affordable metro areas, Peoria has the highest house prices. But it also has the highest median household income among the five, boosting affordability.

4. BINGHAMTON, N.Y.

Median home price: $108,900

Median household income: $51,360

Principal and interest payment: $420 (9.8% of monthly income) Nearby Binghamton University is considered one of the top public universities in the country.

5. DECATUR, ILL.

Median home price: $100,000

Median home price:$46,198

Principal and interest payment: $386 (10% of monthly income) Decatur is in the heart of corn country and is home to an Archer Daniels Midland facility that processes hundreds of thousands of bushels of corn a day.