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Sold For Sale Real Estate Sign in Front of New House.

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Besides employment and family, “affordability” is a key factor when determining a location to live. In most places across the country, people are putting more than a third of their income toward housing.

Money has grown in importance to people over the past 25 years. According to a Wall Street Journal-NORC poll, that need has grown to 43%, up from 31% in 1998.

Office desk with papers and wooden house mockup. real estate concept, Real estate agent, broker. With space for text, with space for copy

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If affordability is a top priority to you, where should you live?

Indianapolis is apparently a good choice as 3 different studies find it as a place with affordable housing (likely one of your biggest expenses) with populations over 500,000. If you want to make money and SAVE money, Indianapolis scores well too.

Moneygeek.com ranked the most affordable by comparing incomes to cost of living. Not surprisingly, the best big cities to make a living are concentrated in the Midwest and the Sunbelt.

Indianapolis holds the #4 spot following Detroit, Columbus, and Austin.

  • Population: 848,788
  • Income/Cost Ratio: 108.2%
  • Cost of living Index Ranking: 91.9
  • Major Employers: St. Vincent Hospital & Health Services, Indiana University Health, Eli Lilly, Community Health Network, Bank of America.
House/flat sold sign

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ConsumerAffairs analyzed the U.S. cities with more than 500,000 people, and ranked each city based on its median monthly housing costs — including spending on mortgages, rent, real estate taxes, property insurance, and utilities.

They listed Indianapolis at #6 for the most affordable housing.

  • Median monthly housing cost: $980.
  • Median home value estimate: $188,700.

If you want to make money and SAVE money, Indianapolis scores well.

For Sale Real Estate Sign in Front of New House.

Source: Feverpitched / Getty

Self Financial says Indianapolis offers city living on a smaller budget. They rank Indianapolis at #8 in the nation. They state that you can receive all the benefits of urban life at a fraction of the price.

  • Score: 87.41
  • Real per capita personal income: $55,127
  • Median housing costs as a percentage of household income: 19.1%
  • Historical unemployment rate: Below average
  • Median home price: $176,777
  • Fair market rent for a two-bedroom: $946