Methodology & Sources

For every state: the median home price, the income needed to buy it at the standard 28% debt-to-income guideline (benchmark: 6.65% rate, 20% down), the actual median household income, and the gap between them — plus a dual-income flag set where the income needed exceeds 125% of the median household income. This dataset powers the state pages' affordability snapshots and the flagship “29 of 51 states” finding.

Sources: Zillow Home Value Index (state medians, Feb 2026); U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (median household income, 2024); Splitero (income-needed benchmark: 28% DTI, 6.65% rate, 20% down).

Medians are statewide — expensive metros and affordable rural areas within one state vary widely. The income-needed figure is a benchmark at fixed assumptions, not a lending decision.

For every state: the foreclosure type (judicial / nonjudicial), typical timeline, post-sale redemption period, anti-deficiency protection, one distinctive legal fact, and a practical buyer tip. Shown on the state pages' legal sections and the regional Learn guides.

Sources: Nolo.com (state foreclosure law summaries, updated May/June 2026); Justia; Bankrate; state-specific legal resources.

General overview only — laws change, and every purchase has specifics. We always pair these facts with a prompt to consult a real estate attorney.

For all 13: land-transfer-tax rules and first-time-buyer rebates, mortgage-enforcement method (power of sale vs judicial sale) and typical timeline, average annual home-insurance premium, and the key federal/provincial buyer programs.

Sources: Canadian federal and provincial government sources; Ratehub; WOWA; Pegasus Lending; Ontario Ministry of Finance (verified June 2026).

For England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland: the transaction tax (SDLT / LBTT / LTT) and first-time-buyer relief, average combined buildings + contents insurance premium, repossession process, and what's genuinely different about buying in each nation.

Sources: Compare the Market (Jan 2026); Go.Compare (Q4 2025); Association of British Insurers (2025/2026); CompareNI.com; Nesto.co.uk; MoneySuperMarket.

Average annual premium for every state at one consistent benchmark ($300,000 dwelling coverage, $1,000 deductible), the main cost-driving risk, flood- and earthquake-insurance guidance flags, and documented 2025–26 market issues (e.g. the Florida and California availability crises).

Sources: Insurance.com / Quadrant Information Services (state premiums, March 2026, $300k dwelling / $1,000 deductible benchmark); FEMA NFIP (flood); state programs (earthquake); title-industry norms.

Premiums are benchmark averages for comparison between states — actual quotes vary by home, location within the state, credit, claims history, and insurer.

The five coverage types a Canadian buyer needs to understand (home, overland flood, sewer backup, earthquake, title) with what each does and doesn't cover, plus province-level premium averages and risk callouts. Canada's overland-flood model — an optional private add-on — is documented as genuinely distinct from both the US and UK models.

Sources: Insurance Bureau of Canada; Government of Canada (overland flood availability); Ratehub and industry 2025–26 market reporting; provincial premium averages cross-checked against Western Financial and WealthNorth (2026).

The homeowner-vs-renter net-worth medians behind the ~40× finding, long-run appreciation rates, and tenure effects. Every figure in this dataset carries its own source field, and on the site each mechanism is always shown next to its honest caveat — including that the net-worth gap is not purely causal.

Sources: Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances / Aspen Institute (net-worth medians); ICE Mortgage Technology; Shiller CAPE housing data; NAR historical data — each figure carries its own source field in the data.