The 'old American Dream died,' Realtor details salary needed to buy a home, afford a middle class life in 2024

foxbusiness.com:

Orlando realtor and TikTok creator Freddie Smith discusses the salary needed for middle-class individuals to qualify for a home in 2024 and other economic obstacles facing Americans starting their lives.

Americans now need to make $120K a year to afford a typical middle-class life and qualify to purchase a home, one expert discusses.

«I think most of us in America would define the middle class as somebody who can work a 40-hour-a-week career and can have the income to purchase the average home in America,» Freddie Smith, an Orlando realtor and TikTok creator, told Fox News Digital.

The TikToker, whose videos explore millennial and Gen Z struggles to afford a home and the general cost of living in today's economic climate, dissected the common factors of living a middle-class existence.

AMERICANS LEAVING COUNTRY DECLARE LIFE ABORAD THE NEW ‘AMERICAN DREAM’ IN VIRAL VIDEOS

«A lot of us grew up middle class, and we watched what middle class was in the 80s and 90s as millennials. And nowadays, what has moved the goalpost more than anything is the housing market,» the relator said.

Home in Summerville listed for $765,000. (Jeff Cook Real Estate LPT Realty / Fox News)

Smith explained how, just a few years ago, $60-$70K a year would have been sufficient to qualify for a home. 

With the average cost of a house being around $400K-$420K in 2024, people's salaries would need to be around $120K a year for people to even qualify, Smith explained.

The realtor highlights how this wage-to-housing gap has forced many people to rent for a longer period.

«Rent prices are taking up 30-40% of people's income, making it harder for them to save for a house. So it's this perpetual cycle that is keeping people out of the middle class,» he