Statistics hub
First-time real estate investor statistics for 2026
Starting out is mostly a fight against unknown numbers: what homes cost, what loans cost, what rent actually covers. This page collects the national figures a first-time investor runs into, from the current mortgage rate to the property taxes beginners forget. Sources are FRED and the Census Bureau's ACS 2024 5-year ACS release, linked on every card.
By Adam Langley · Last updated 2026-08-16 · Data: ACS 2024 5-year ACS and FRED
30-year fixed rate
6.67%
Freddie Mac weekly average, week of 2026-08-13
Median home value
$332,700
The broadest national price anchor (Census ACS)
20% down payment
$66,540
The conventional benchmark; FHA owner-occupied cuts it to $11,645
Monthly P&I
$1,712/mo
On the median home with 20% down, before taxes and insurance
What does it cost to start investing in real estate in 2026?
The median U.S. home is worth $332,700, the average 30-year mortgage rate is 6.67%, and a conventional 20% down payment on that median home is $66,540. Owner-occupied paths such as house hacking cut the down payment to 3.5%, about $11,600 at the same price.
Key takeaways
- Entry at the median: $332,700 home value, 6.67% average rate, $66,540 for a 20% down payment.
- Principal and interest on that median home run $1,712/mo with 20% down, before taxes ($3,119/yr at the median) and insurance.
- The revenue side: median annual gross rent is $16,956, a 5.1% gross yield at the median. National medians do not cash flow; specific markets do.
- The demand is real: 45.0 million renter households nationwide. What varies is the local math, which is why the actual cash to start ranges from about $19,000 to $127,000 in our 50-metro first-rental study.
How much does it cost to get into a first property?
A 20% down payment on the $332,700 median U.S. home is $66,540, and the payment that follows is $1,712/mo a month in principal and interest at the current 6.67% average rate. But 20% is a convention, not a law. The owner-occupied FHA path takes 3.5% down, $11,645 on the same home, about 5.7 times less cash for the same front door.
FHA owner-occupied (3.5%)
$11,645
Conventional benchmark (20%)
$66,540
Both computed on the $332,700 median home value. FHA requires living in the property, which is the house-hacking route.
The monthly ledger has three recurring lines worth knowing cold: the loan payment, the median rent a home brings in, and the property tax bill quietly sitting inside every estimate at about $260 a month.
Principal and interest20% down, 6.67% rate
$1,712/mo
Median gross rentwhat a typical home earns
$1,413/mo
Property taxes$3,119/yr at the median
$260/mo
All three at national medians. Orange marks the loan payment, the line the other two have to answer to. Insurance and maintenance come on top.
$332,700
Median U.S. home value
The owner-estimated median value of owner-occupied homes, the broadest national price anchor.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B25077
6.67%
Average 30-year fixed mortgage rate
The Freddie Mac weekly national average for conventional 30-year loans. Investor loans usually price above it.
Source: Freddie Mac 30-year fixed average via FRED (MORTGAGE30US), week of 2026-08-13
$66,540
20% down payment on the median home
The conventional benchmark. Owner-occupied paths (FHA, house hacking) can cut this to 3.5% down.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B25077
$1,712/mo
Monthly principal and interest on the median home
Computed on the $332,700 median home with 20% down at the current 6.67% average rate, 30-year term. Taxes and insurance come on top.
Source: Freddie Mac 30-year fixed average via FRED (MORTGAGE30US), week of 2026-08-13
What this means for a first-time investor: the size of your first check is a choice of loan structure before it is a savings problem. The trade-offs between 3.5%, 15%, and 25% down are real, and they are laid out in how much down payment an investment property takes.
What do households earn against what homes cost?
The median U.S. household earns $80,734 a year, and the median home is worth 4.1x that income. Lenders underwrite income before they underwrite ambition, so this ratio, not the sticker price, is what decides whether a market is within reach for the household living in it.
Owner-occupied households (84.2 million)
65.2%
The remaining 34.8%, about 45.0 million households, rent: the tenant pool every rental competes for.
The national ratio also hides the whole point of market selection. In the most affordable city we track, the same measure drops to 2.5x, meaning the typical local home costs two and a half years of the typical local income instead of more than four.
United States
4.1x
Cleveland, OH
2.5x
Median home value divided by median household income (Census B25077, B19013). Orange marks the affordable end of the spread.
$80,734
Median household income
The income side of every affordability and lending calculation.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B19013
4.1x
National price-to-income ratio
Median home value ($332,700) divided by median household income ($80,734).
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B25077
65.2%
U.S. homeownership rate
84.2 million of 129.2 million occupied households own their home.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B25003
$3,119
Median annual real estate taxes
An effective property tax rate of about 0.94% on the median home value, and one of the expenses beginners most often forget.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B25103
What this means for a first-time investor: your income and the market's prices are the two halves of the affordability equation, and you can only change one of them. If a house hack is on your list, the free house hacking calculator shows how tenant rent changes what you can afford.
Does a typical home cash flow as a rental?
No. Median annual gross rent is $16,956, while a year of principal and interest on the median home runs about $20,544 with 20% down: a $3,588 shortfall before taxes, insurance, and maintenance even enter the ledger. At national medians, rent covers roughly 83% of the loan payment and none of the rest.
Median annual gross rent
$16,956
Annual principal and interest
$20,544
Rent from Census B25064; the payment computed at 20% down and the current 6.67% Freddie Mac average. The gap widens once taxes and insurance are added.
This is the most useful honest number on the page. The 5.1%national gross yield is an average of markets that work and markets that do not, and buying "the average" means paying the difference out of pocket every month. Investing works where local rents are strong relative to local prices.
$16,956
Median annual gross rent
Twelve months at the $1,413 median gross rent: the revenue side of a typical rental at national medians.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B25064
5.1%
Gross rent yield on the median U.S. home
Annual median rent divided by median home value, before any expenses. Individual markets range far above and below it.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B25064
45.0 million
Renter households (the tenant pool)
Every rental property competes for a share of these households. The market is large and national.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 5-year estimates, table B25003
What this means for a first-time investor: never underwrite a deal on national averages. Find the markets where the ratio flips, using the framework in how to pick a city for real estate investing, then pressure-test the specific property in the free rental cashflow calculator before you offer.
How do home prices and property taxes compare by state?
The median home costs $875,900 in Hawaii and $170,800 in West Virginia, a 5.1x spread between the most and least expensive states. Property taxes have their own geography: Illinois carries the highest effective rate at 1.92% of home value per year, and Hawaii the lowest at 0.27%. The table below lists all 50 states and DC on the three numbers that set a first deal's cost basis: what homes cost, how that compares to local incomes, and what the tax collector takes each year.
| State | ValueMedian home value | P/IPrice-to-income | TaxEffective property tax |
|---|---|---|---|
| ALAlabama | $233,300 | 3.5x | 0.38% |
| AKAlaska | $376,500 | 3.9x | 1.06% |
| AZArizona | $426,000 | 5.2x | 0.43% |
| ARArkansas | $215,600 | 3.5x | 0.52% |
| CACalifornia | $759,500 | 7.6x | 0.71% |
| COColorado | $574,600 | 5.9x | 0.49% |
| CTConnecticut | $396,900 | 4.1x | 1.66% |
| DEDelaware | $371,600 | 4.2x | 0.47% |
| DCDistrict of Columbia | $733,400 | 6.7x | 0.63% |
| FLFlorida | $396,900 | 5.1x | 0.75% |
| GAGeorgia | $343,300 | 4.3x | 0.74% |
| HIHawaii | $875,900 | 8.7x | 0.27% |
| IDIdaho | $446,400 | 5.5x | 0.43% |
| ILIllinois | $280,700 | 3.4x | 1.92% |
| INIndiana | $243,500 | 3.4x | 0.74% |
| IAIowa | $227,300 | 3.0x | 1.29% |
| KSKansas | $238,700 | 3.2x | 1.25% |
| KYKentucky | $226,000 | 3.5x | 0.71% |
| LALouisiana | $223,200 | 3.7x | 0.53% |
| MEMaine | $341,900 | 4.5x | 0.91% |
| MDMaryland | $436,300 | 4.2x | 0.95% |
| MAMassachusetts | $607,400 | 5.8x | 1.00% |
| MIMichigan | $254,200 | 3.5x | 1.18% |
| MNMinnesota | $344,600 | 4.0x | 1.02% |
| MSMississippi | $186,500 | 3.2x | 0.65% |
| MOMissouri | $254,400 | 3.6x | 0.79% |
| MTMontana | $425,400 | 5.6x | 0.69% |
| NENebraska | $263,100 | 3.4x | 1.42% |
| NVNevada | $455,500 | 5.6x | 0.47% |
| NHNew Hampshire | $458,800 | 4.6x | 1.46% |
| NJNew Jersey | $496,000 | 4.8x | 1.89% |
| NMNew Mexico | $279,900 | 4.1x | 0.63% |
| NYNew York | $449,800 | 5.2x | 1.45% |
| NCNorth Carolina | $333,000 | 4.5x | 0.61% |
| NDNorth Dakota | $266,100 | 3.4x | 0.96% |
| OHOhio | $239,800 | 3.3x | 1.22% |
| OKOklahoma | $222,100 | 3.4x | 0.75% |
| OROregon | $497,500 | 5.8x | 0.78% |
| PAPennsylvania | $277,600 | 3.6x | 1.16% |
| RIRhode Island | $455,700 | 5.5x | 1.07% |
| SCSouth Carolina | $299,500 | 4.1x | 0.45% |
| SDSouth Dakota | $289,600 | 3.8x | 1.02% |
| TNTennessee | $332,600 | 4.6x | 0.45% |
| TXTexas | $313,200 | 3.9x | 1.31% |
| UTUtah | $545,200 | 5.6x | 0.49% |
| VTVermont | $352,800 | 4.3x | 1.42% |
| VAVirginia | $403,500 | 4.4x | 0.71% |
| WAWashington | $602,200 | 6.1x | 0.79% |
| WVWest Virginia | $170,800 | 2.8x | 0.52% |
| WIWisconsin | $294,700 | 3.8x | 1.25% |
| WYWyoming | $339,500 | 4.5x | 0.57% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 2024 1-year (tables B25077, B25103, B19013), state level. Effective tax rate is median annual real estate taxes divided by median home value; price-to-income is median home value divided by median household income.
Download the data: us-housing-by-state.csv (all 51 states, free to reuse with attribution).
The tax column changes the monthly math more than beginners expect, because it never amortizes and never goes away. On a home at the $332,700 national median value, Illinois's 1.92% rate means roughly $532 a month in property taxes, while Hawaii's 0.27% rate means about $75. That difference lands directly on cashflow, every month, for as long as you own the property. It is also why a cheap-looking state is not automatically a cheap state to operate in, and why taxes belong in the upfront math alongside the down payment and closing costs in our closing costs calculator.
What this means for a first-time investor: read the three columns together, not separately. A state with modest values, a low price-to-income ratio, and a moderate tax rate will usually beat a headline-cheap state with a heavy tax load. The same three-way trade-off at metro level, with the actual cash required, is mapped in our 50-metro first-rental study.
What have prices and mortgage rates done over time?
The typical U.S. home went from $127,991 in 2000 to $371,774 today, a 190% increase over the period. The climb was anything but even: values crawled through the 2010s, jumped hardest in the pandemic years, and have nearly flattened since.
| Year | Typical home value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | $127,991 | |
| 2010 | $175,344 | +37.0% |
| 2015 | $196,366 | +12.0% |
| 2020 | $259,639 | +32.2% |
| 2021 | $305,997 | +17.9% |
| 2022 | $355,037 | +16.0% |
| 2023 | $355,172 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | $367,067 | +3.3% |
| 2025 | $368,144 | +0.3% |
| 2026 | $371,774 | +1.0% |
Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), U.S., mid-tier, smoothed and seasonally adjusted, as of July 2026. Early rows are spaced five to ten years apart, so the change column compares each row with the previous row shown, not a fixed interval.
Mortgage rates ran the opposite route. The 30-year fixed averaged 8.05% in 2000, slid for two decades to a low of 2.96% in 2021, then snapped back. So far in 2026 it averages 6.34%: cheap money by 2000 standards, expensive by 2021standards, and the single input that moves a first deal's monthly payment most.
| Year | 30-year fixed average | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 8.05% | |
| 2005 | 5.87% | -2.18pp |
| 2010 | 4.69% | -1.18pp |
| 2015 | 3.85% | -0.84pp |
| 2020 | 3.11% | -0.74pp |
| 2021 | 2.96% | -0.15pp |
| 2022 | 5.34% | +2.38pp |
| 2023 | 6.81% | +1.47pp |
| 2024 | 6.72% | -0.09pp |
| 2025 | 6.60% | -0.12pp |
| 2026 (YTD) | 6.34% | -0.26pp |
Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey via FRED (MORTGAGE30US), annual averages of weekly values. 2026 averages the weeks published so far. Change compares each row with the previous row shown, in percentage points.
Download the data: metro-rent-value-trends.csv (rent and value trends for 50 metros, free to reuse with attribution).
What this means for a first-time investor: waiting for 2021 rates to come back is not a plan, and neither is waiting for 2000prices. A deal gets underwritten at today's rate and today's price, and it either works under those numbers or it does not. Run your own income and down payment against the current rate in the free home affordability calculator, and let refinancing be upside rather than the assumption the deal depends on.
Cite or republish this data
Cite or republish this data
Real Estate Explained, "First-Time Real Estate Investor Statistics (2026)" (2026). https://realestate-explained.com/stats/first-time-real-estate-investor-statistics
The table, charts, and CSV are free to republish, in full or in part, with attribution and a link back to this page.
Frequently asked questions
How much money does a first-time real estate investor need?
It depends on the loan. On the $332,700 median U.S. home, a conventional 20% down payment is $66,540, while an owner-occupied FHA purchase (the house-hacking path) needs 3.5% down, about $11,600 at the same price. Closing costs and lender reserves come on top of either number, and cheaper metros cut both dramatically.
What is the current mortgage rate for investors?
The Freddie Mac 30-year fixed average is 6.67% for the week of 2026-08-13. That average reflects owner-occupied conventional loans; pure investment-property loans typically price 0.5 to 1 percentage point higher, which is one reason many beginners start with an owner-occupied purchase.
Does a typical U.S. home cash flow as a rental?
Not at national medians with 20% down. Median annual gross rent is $16,956, while principal and interest alone run about $1,712/mo, or roughly $20,544 a year, before taxes, insurance, and maintenance. That gap is exactly why market selection matters: individual metros sit far above and below the 5.1% national gross yield.
What is the U.S. price-to-income ratio in 2026?
4.1x: the $332,700 median home value divided by the $80,734 median household income. In the most affordable city we track (Cleveland, OH) the same ratio is 2.5x, which is why the market you pick moves the affordability math more than anything you can negotiate on one house.
How much are property taxes on the median U.S. home?
$3,119 a year at the median, which works out to about $260 a month and an effective rate of roughly 0.94% of the $332,700 median home value. Property taxes are one of the expenses beginners most often leave out of their first cashflow estimate.
Where does this data come from and how current is it?
Home values, incomes, rents, tenure, and property taxes come from the U.S. Census Bureau's ACS 2024 5-year American Community Survey release. The mortgage rate is the Freddie Mac weekly average published by FRED for the week of 2026-08-13. The page was last rebuilt on 2026-08-16, and every stat links its primary source.
Which state has the highest property taxes on real estate?
Illinois, measured by effective rate: median real estate taxes there equal 1.92% of the median home's value, with New Jersey close behind at 1.89%. Measured in dollars, New Jersey has the largest median bill at $9,358 a year. The lowest effective rate is Hawaii's 0.27%, and the smallest median bill is West Virginia's $881 (Census ACS 2024 1-year, tables B25103 and B25077).
Are mortgage rates high by historical standards?
No by long-run standards, yes against the recent past. The 30-year fixed averaged 8.05% in 2000, fell to a low of 2.96% in 2021, and has averaged 6.34% so far in 2026 (Freddie Mac via FRED, annual averages of weekly values). Today's rate sits well below the 2000 level but more than double the 2021 low, and the 2021 comparison is the one most buyers feel.
Sources
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey via FRED, week of 2026-08-13 · The 6.67% 30-year fixed average used for the rate and monthly-payment figures; the rate-history table uses annual averages of the same weekly series (MORTGAGE30US)
- Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), U.S., mid-tier, smoothed and seasonally adjusted · The national home-value history behind the 2000-to-2026 trend table, as of July 2026
- U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, ACS 2024 5-year estimates · Tables B25077 (median home value), B19013 (median household income), B25003 (tenure), B25064 (median gross rent), and B25103 (median real estate taxes), national and state level
- Census Reporter · The open API that serves the ACS tables above; every figure on this page traces to a specific table
Knowing the averages is not a plan.
The national numbers tell you the game exists. Your first deal depends on one city, one loan, and one property, chosen in the right order. That sequence is what the 28-day course teaches, and the free guide is the plain-English starting point.