The most recent study by the real estate research website PropertyShark takes an interesting approach to evaluating housing markets around the country.
They’ve analyzed the growing gap between home prices and wages from the perspective of just one profession: nursing.
Studying 12 of America’s biggest medical hubs — including Pittsburgh — the website tracked the growth of median home prices and the growth of nursing wages between 2008 and 2018.
The study found that in Pittsburgh, a nursing professional would be able to buy a home with just over two years’ worth of income, making it one of the most affordable major medical markets for nurses in the country.
Pittsburgh ranked third most affordable, just below Baltimore and Philadelphia. No surprise: Out of the 12 cities, homes in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York were the least affordable on a nursing salary.
But even in Pittsburgh, purchasing power is decreasing compared with a decade ago.
Read the full study here.