ATL Standard

The average first-time homebuyer looking for a house under $200,000 probably shouldn't be looking in Atlanta.

The Federal Reserve Bank has labeled homeownership in Atlanta unaffordable for standard buyers, Fox 5 Atlanta reported.

Real estate expert and Buckhead investor Stefan Walsh told Fox 5 Atlanta that Atlanta's housing market is a boon to real estate workers such as himself, but not so good for most buyers.

"If you're going for a $200,000 house that's inside the Perimeter, in really good shape, in a great part of town. Then no, this is not an affordable market for you to buy in," Walsh said.

The Federal Reserve Bank's assessment of Atlanta's housing market is based on the Home Ownership Affordability Monitor Index, which provides data on whether a median-income household can afford the typical annual costs of a median-priced home in a given market, Fox 5 Atlanta reported. The Department of Housing and Urban Development defines affordability in this metric as 30% of a household's pretax income.

Based on those measurements, the Federal Reserve Bank designated Atlanta, where the median house price is $350,000 and the median income is $73,000, as being out of reach for most homebuyers, Fox 5 Atlanta reported.

Walsh said he recently sold a home in Buford where 90 groups attended an open house that only lasted four hours, Fox 5 Atlanta reported.

"On one house, 20 different people wanted to buy it and actually sent an offer for it," Walsh said. "It's ridiculous."

Walsh said supply and demand are responsible for the state of the Atlanta housing market, Fox 5 Atlanta reported.

"There's almost nothing available for sale compared to how many buyers are out there, which is just supply and demand," Walsh said. "That's why the prices are going up."