Indianapolis remains cheapest housing market in U.S.

Indianapolis is the nation's cheapest major housing market for a third consecutive quarter, according to a new report from the National Association of Home Builders. More than 90 percent of homes sold in Indianapolis in the first quarter of 2006 were affordable to families earning the area's median household income of $65,100. The median sales price was $113,000. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale, Calif. maintained its standing at the very bottom of the affordability chart in the first quarter, with just 1.9 percent of new and existing homes being affordable. Another study from Moody's Economy.com found homeowners in Monterey County, Calif., had to tap nearly 60 percent of their gross incomes in 2005 to make the median monthly house payment. In Fort Wayne, the percentage was about 10 percent, Moody's said.