Massachusetts has ranked as the state where it is most expensive to buy a home, MarketWatch reports.
Massachusetts ranked as the most expensive state to buy a home in, according to a report from personal-finance website SmartAsset. The analysis assessed 48 states and Washington, D.C., based on the following metrics (Delaware and Louisiana were not included due to insufficient data):
- Effective property tax rate, based on U.S. Census Bureau data
- Median listing price and price per square foot, according to Zillow ZG, -0.58%
- Median value for homes in the bottom third of the market
- Average closing costs, according to SmartAsset’s own closing cost calculator
All the states were ranked for each of these metrics, and then researchers calculated their average ranking. This then determined the index value they were assigned on a scale from 0 to 100, with 100 being the cheapest. Massachusetts’ index came in at zero, while West Virginia was the most affordable state with a value of 100.
