Americas most expensive housing market is a married-couple stronghold

Nestled in the heart of California’s Silicon Valley, San Jose is synonymous with a booming tech industry and sky-high home prices—but it also stands out for having one of the highest concentrations of married couples among major US metros. In San Jose, roughly 54% of households are forged in marriage, compared to less than half of households nationwide, according to a new analysis of the US Census Bureau’s American Community Survey data carried out by the National Association of Realtors. “The data shows that high-cost metros may delay family formation, but they don’t eliminate it,” writes Nadia Evangelou, senior economist and director of real estate research at NAR. San Jose has the distinction of consistently ranking as the nation’s priciest housing market among the 50 biggest metros.In January, the typical home in the city cost $1.195 million, which is roughly three times the national median of $399,900, according to the latest monthly housing market trends report from Realtor.com.Evangelou explains that while people in high-priced markets like San Jose tend to defer marriage and parenthood, most still say “I do” eventually.According to the NAR economist, these married-couple households are likelier to have dual incomes, higher levels of education, and greater financial stability than their unmarried counterparts.Alexander Kalla, a San Francisco Bay Area-based real estate agent, says married buyers in San Jose enjoy a major financial advantage over singles.“The entry ticket to homeownership in San Jose is so high that it’s simply much easier to make the math work when there are two strong W‑2 incomes behind the purchase,” Kalla tells Realtor.com.

“With typical home prices well into seven figures, even a modest single‑family home requires a six‑figure down payment and a very large monthly payment, and that’s a lot for one income to shoulder alone.” Get the perfect blend of news, sports and entertainment de...