Do you need a six-figure income to buy a home in South Dakota?

The cost of buying a home here in the U.S. is skyrocketing. Home prices are currently approaching all-time highs.

Dakota News Now reports that you currently need a six-figure income to purchase a new home in 22 states and the District of Columbia.

A recent study by Bankrate found that just four years ago, there were only six states in the country where you needed a six-figure income to purchase a typical new home, but the situation has changed dramatically since then.

According to an article by Bankrate, the median home price in the United States is currently about $402,343, meaning most Americans would need to earn at least $110,871 a year to qualify for a mortgage — a figure that's up 46% since the beginning of 2020.

If you live in California, Hawaii, Washington DC, Massachusetts, or Washington state, you'll need to make a pretty penny to buy a home. According to a Bankrate study, these five states have the highest annual income required to buy a typical new home. According to the data, homebuyers in these states need to earn between $156,814 and $197,057 to qualify for a mortgage.

Conversely, those living in Mississippi, Ohio, Arkansas, Indiana and Kentucky need a minimum level of income: between $63,043 and $65,186 per year.

Good news: The median home price in South Dakota is currently about $292,551, according to Zillow. So, if you live in a Midwestern state like South Dakota and are hoping to buy a home anytime soon, you're in luck: you live in one of the states where you need one of the lowest incomes to purchase an average home.

The Midwestern states and the Southern states fall into that category.

Nationwide, more expensive homes will be found in western and northeastern states.

Rising mortgage rates and a housing shortage are the two biggest culprits.

Rising interest rates are increasing the income needed to purchase a median-priced home anywhere in the country. Mortgage rates have risen by more than 3 percentage points over the past few years. The average 30-year fixed rate was 3.68 percent in January 2020, but was 7.07 percent as of March 20 of this year.

Unfortunately, the average worker's wages aren't keeping up with home prices, with 20% of current potential homebuyers believing they'll never save enough to one day buy a home.

sauce: DakotaNewsNow/Bankrate