If you’re hoping to save up for your first home as fast as possible, the Midwest just might be the best place to start your search.
A new report from RentCafe, a real estate listing and research firm, looked at 174 metro areas to identify the cities where it’s typically quickest to save up for a 20% down payment on a starter home. And the Midwest dominated the rankings.
Bloomington, Illinois — where a median two-person family earns roughly $91,000 per year and the median starter home price is $105,249 — topped the list. By RentCafe’s calculations (using government data as well as data from Zillow), that two-person family can sock away 22% of their income and save enough money for a 20% down payment on a starter home in just one year.
Springfield, Illinois, ranked second, with a timeline of one year and three months to save for a down payment. The median price of a starter home in Springfield is just $81,901.
Seven of the 20 places on RentCafe’s list are located in Illinois, and 14 are in the Midwest. A handful of Midwestern cities including Beech Grove, Indiana, and Grimes, Iowa, also appeared on Realtor.com’s recent list of the best cities for first-time homebuyers thanks to their low cost of living, good job markets and large inventory of available homes.