7 Arizona Cities Retirees Have the Best Shot of Owning a Home

As you enter your golden years, you may be considering relocating — and with that comes buying a house. But becoming a homeowner isn’t cheap, and some places allow you to make smarter homeowner moves than others.

Known for its warm temperatures, being tax-friendly, and its outdoor activities, Arizona is a popular destination for retirees. But which cities are you most likely to be able to buy a home?

FinanceBuzz conducted a study to find out where homeownership is most and least attainable. We looked at the 100 largest cities in the country to determine how difficult it is for someone to become a homeowner and assigned each an attainability score. The final ranking was based on several general economic factors and housing-specific data points in each city. 

While three Arizona cities came out as some of the most attainable in the country, how do they compare to the rest of the state? Here’s where you stand the best chance of owning a home in Arizona, ranked from most challenging to most accessible to homebuyers.

Out of the cities we evaluated in Arizona, homeownership is the least attainable in Tucson. Residents spend 32% of their median household income on mortgage payments, and the homeownership rate in the city is 52%.

The median home sale price in Tucson is $381,600.

In the Valley of the Sun, house prices surpass $400,000. The median sale price of a home in Phoenix is $467,200.

The median household income in the city is $75,969, and residents only spend 26% of their median household income on mortgage payments — one of the lowest in the country. Almost 60% of residents call themselves homeowners in the state’s capital city.

If you retire in Glendale and plan to buy a house, you can expect to put 24% of your monthly income toward paying your mortgage. This is one of the lowest of all cities evaluated across the country.

The median sale price of a home in the city is $467,200, and 60% of the city’s residents own their homes.

Owning a home is even more attainable in Mesa. The city has a homeownership rate of 65%. Homeowners in the city spend 25% of their income on their mortgage payments, and the median sale price of a home is $467,200.

The homeownership rate in Scottsdale is the fourth-highest in the country. Here, 67% of residents own their home. The median price of a home is $467,200.

Scottsdale is one of just 12 of all cities evaluated where the median household income exceeds the $100,000 mark — and only one of two in Arizona to surpass that number. Just 27% of monthly income is needed to cover the median monthly mortgage payment in the city.

In Chandler, a low percentage of income is needed to pay average mortgage costs (22%), and houses in the city have a median sale price of $467,200. It is the second city near Phoenix in the top five most attainable places of all cities we surveyed nationwide.

There is also a high median household income. On average, residents make $98,664 per year.

Gilbert is the city in Arizona — and in the entire country — where homeownership is most attainable for retirees. The homeownership rate is 74%, and the median home sale price is $467,200.

The median household income in Gilbert is $111,393, which is among the 10 highest in the country. The median mortgage payment amounts to just 21% of the median household income in Gilbert, which is the lowest rate in the country.

Not only are some cities in Arizona affordable for homeowners, but the state also has tax benefits that retirees can take advantage of.

While other forms of retirement income are taxed in the state, like distributions from retirement savings accounts, retirees won’t be taxed on their social security income, which is a smart way to stretch your retirement dollars further.