We're #1 - Most Affordable Housing

For those of you who are looking for affordable housing, Forbes has just ranked Indy as having the lowest median housing prices among large cities in the U.S.A. The median price of a home in Indianapolis is now $112,000 with the average household income at just over $60,000.

So how much will your payment be? Let's assume you or your rich aunt have $22,000 for a down payment. That will save you the grief of mortgage insurance which can costs several hundred dollars per year if you make a down payment of less than 20 percent. That would leave you borrowing $90,000. On a 30 year fixed rate of 7% your principal and interest would be $598.77.

Then you need to add your property taxes and that is a bit of a guess because of the current property tax mess in Indianapolis. But, let's assume the government leaves property taxes somewhere in the same range as 2006. You could expect to pay around $1800 per year or $150 per month.

Of course the mortgage company wants to make sure you have insurance, so that will be escrowed into your payment. That will add an additional $35 per month to the payment.

That all tallies up to a monthly payment of $783.77 per month plus whatever you agreed to pay back to your rich aunt (She did not get rich giving her money away).

Another important thing to remember is maintaining your home. The more you do yourself the less it will cost, but try not to burn your little love nest down trying to rewire it or falling off the roof fixing a leak during a thunderstorm. I would suggest keeping a couple grand socked away. Your never can tell when the furnace is going to crap out on you when it is 5 degrees below zero and your pipes are freezing. BTW, plumbers cost more than heating and A/C guys.

Now, the bad news is I cannot think of a neighborhood I would want to live in where the houses cost $112,000. So, double all of the numbers unless your own a pit bull and don't mind if your next door neighbor is Donnie Baker.