The average household in 24 of America's 25 largest metropolitan areas cannot afford to pay for the average priced new car or truck, a new study shows.
"Just because you can manage the monthly payment doesn't mean you should let a $30,000 or $40,000 ride gobble up such a huge share of your paycheck," said Mike Sante, managing editor of Interest.com, which released the study on Wednesday. "Many people are spending money on a car payment that they could be saving."
For the second straight year, Interest.com calculated how much the median household in America's largest metro areas could afford to spend every month on car payments and auto insurance.
Washington topped the list again with the median household being able to afford a maximum monthly payment of $641.
The study showed that Tampa and Miami are the only two cities where car affordability declined over the past year. The biggest jump was in San Antonio where affordability increased 7 percent compared with last year.
Interest.com makes its calculations assuming buyer's put down 20 percent and take out a 48-month auto loan.
Top 5 metro areas for auto affordability:
- Washington, D.C.
- San Francisco
- Boston
- Minneapolis
- Baltimore
