Realtor.com® found the average percentage down payment in the 50 largest U.S. metro areas using mortgage and home price data. Realtor.com®’s Lance Lambert writes:
Lenders prefer those gold standard 20% down payments because they ensure that buyers have enough skin in the game...But many buyers also have access to a variety of mortgage programs, such as the Federal Housing Administration loan, which allow those with decent credit scores to put down only 3.5%. The catch: In some markets (often with sky-high home prices), many homes don't qualify for these programs.
Realtor.com® found that San Jose, Calif. Had the highest average down payment at 23.9% followed by San Francisco, Calif. At 22.6%. Given the high home prices in these metro areas, the average down payment made over the last 12 months was $257,000 and $212,000, respectively. Virginia Beach, Va. had the lowest average down payment because of the availability of U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs home loans and Federal Housing Administration loans, which bring the metro average down to 6.8%.
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