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Own Luxury Homes®
Own Luxury Homes® National Luxury Price-to-Income Index™
Own Luxury Homes® National Luxury Price-to-Income Index™: $1M+ tier median price divided by top-decile professional household income. Jupiter Island FL: 12-28:1 (100% asset/equity-driven buyers). Aspen CO: 10-25:1. Palm Beach FL: 8-25:1. Dallas TX: 4-6:1 (more local professional income support). Washington DC: 3-6:1 (most income-sustainable luxury market). High-ratio markets are sensitive to equity/asset corrections; low-ratio markets are sensitive to income/employment cycles. Own Luxury Homes® 12-Point Agent Integrity Audit™.
Own Luxury Homes® Research Index · National Luxury Real Estate
Own Luxury Homes® National Luxury Price-to-Income Index™
The ratio of luxury home prices to local professional household income is the most reliable indicator of how a luxury market is valued relative to its indigenous buyer base — and how dependent it is on imported equity from out-of-market buyers. Markets with very high price-to-income ratios (above 8:1) are structurally dependent on buyers who arrive with prior equity or inherited wealth. Markets near 3:1 can be sustained by local professional household income alone. This Index calculates the ratio for 16 major luxury markets.
⚠️ Median home prices and income data change. Ratios use $1M+ tier median price vs. top-decile professional household income in each market. Verify with current data sources.
14:1+
Price-to-professional-income ratio for Jupiter Island, FL and Aspen, CO at current $5M-$10M+ entry prices — structurally impossible to sustain without wealthy out-of-market buyers
3:1
Approximate ratio at which luxury home prices can be sustained by local dual-professional household income alone without requiring prior equity or inherited wealth
7:1
Approximate national average price-to-income ratio for homes priced at $1 million in their respective markets — the baseline against which individual markets can be compared
$250,000
Approximate annual professional household income (dual income, top decile) used as the denominator in this Index’s ratio calculation for most major metro markets
01 — Price-to-Income Ratios by Market ($1M+ Tier)
| Market | Approx $1M+ Tier Median | Prof. HH Income (top decile) | Price-to-Income Ratio | Dependency on Outside Equity | Market Vulnerability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jupiter Island / Manalapan, FL | $5M–$20M+ | $400K–$700K (HNW retiree income) | 12:1–28:1 | Nearly 100% dependent on prior equity, inherited wealth, or liquidity events | LOW (buyers don't need income support; they have assets) |
| Aspen, CO | $4M–$15M+ | $350K–$600K (resort professional) | 10:1–25:1 | Essentially all buyers come with prior equity or extraordinary wealth | LOW (asset-driven; income ratio irrelevant to buyer qualification) |
| Palm Beach, FL | $3M–$15M+ | $300K–$600K (finance/retiree income) | 8:1–25:1 | Very high dependency on inherited wealth, prior real estate equity, PE/hedge fund liquidity | LOW (same as above; buyers are not qualifying on income) |
| San Francisco Bay Area, CA | $1.5M–$5M+ | $350K–$700K (tech household) | 4:1–8:1 | Moderate — tech RSU vesting and equity compensation partially replace prior equity | MODERATE (RSU liquidity creates income-independent buyers; rate-sensitive) |
| New York City (Manhattan) | $1.5M–$8M+ | $300K–$600K (finance/professional) | 4:1–12:1 | High dependency on finance bonus income, prior equity, and international wealth | MODERATE-HIGH (bonus cycle sensitivity; co-op board income requirements moderate exposure) |
| Los Angeles, CA | $1.5M–$8M+ | $250K–$500K (entertainment/tech) | 5:1–12:1 | High dependency on prior equity and entertainment/tech liquidity events | MODERATE-HIGH (equity-dependent; rate-sensitive above $3M) |
| Naples, FL | $1M–$5M+ | $250K–$500K (retirement income + assets) | 4:1–10:1 | High dependency on retirement equity from prior primary market sales | MODERATE (retirement equity buyers; stock market correlation) |
| Dallas / Fort Worth, TX | $1M–$3M+ | $250K–$500K (corporate professional) | 4:1–6:1 | Moderate — more local professional income support than coastal markets | LOWER (more domestic income-qualified buyers; corporate relocation sustains demand) |
| Nashville, TN | $1M–$2.5M+ | $200K–$400K (entertainment/corporate) | 4:1–8:1 | Moderate — in-migration equity from CA/NY/IL plus local entertainment wealth | LOWER-MODERATE (growing local wealth base; in-migration equity significant) |
| Miami / Brickell, FL | $1M–$4M+ | $200K–$400K (finance/international) | 4:1–10:1 | High dependency on international wealth and domestic in-migration equity | MODERATE (international buyer demand smooths domestic cycle; currency risk) |
| Washington DC metro | $1M–$3M+ | $300K–$600K (government/contractor) | 3:1–6:1 | Lower dependency than coastal markets; government-adjacent income is stable | LOWER (stable professional demand; less equity-dependent) |
| Boston, MA | $1M–$3M+ | $250K–$500K (academic/biotech/finance) | 4:1–6:1 | Moderate — biotech equity events plus traditional finance wealth | LOWER-MODERATE (diversified wealth sources; stable demand) |
| Scottsdale / Paradise Valley, AZ | $1M–$4M+ | $200K–$400K (corporate/retiree) | 4:1–8:1 | Growing winter second-home and CA migration equity dependency | LOWER (growing market; CA equity buyers are meaningful support) |
| Chicago, IL | $1M–$2.5M+ | $250K–$500K (corporate/finance) | 4:1–6:1 | Moderate local income support but softened by population loss dynamics | MODERATE (supply overhang; population loss creates price ceiling) |
| Las Vegas, NV | $1M–$3M+ | $150K–$350K (gaming/entertainment/athlete) | 5:1–8:1 | Growing athlete/entertainment/entrepreneur equity buyer base; less conventional income | LOWER (cash-buyer culture; income ratio less relevant for this buyer profile) |
| Minneapolis, MN | $1M–$2M+ | $200K–$400K (corporate/medical) | 4:1–5:1 | Smaller luxury market; more local professional income support relative to price | LOWER (but limited buyer pool; demand ceiling caps appreciation) |
| Price-to-income ratios use approximate $1M+ tier median price vs. top-decile professional household income. Ratios at ultra-luxury ($5M+) are much higher. Markets with very high ratios are not at risk of collapse — their buyers are asset-driven, not income-driven. The ratio predicts which markets are sensitive to equity market corrections vs. which are sensitive to income or employment changes. | |||||
Ryan Brown — Principal Broker & CEO, FL BK3626873
“The price-to-income ratio tells me what risks are real for each luxury market. A high ratio market like Palm Beach doesn’t fall when incomes decline — it falls when asset values decline, when estate planning forces sales, or when the pool of buyers with sufficient prior equity contracts. A lower ratio market like DC is more sensitive to income and employment cycles. When clients ask me "is this a safe market to buy luxury real estate?" the answer requires knowing which type of risk they’re protected against and which they’re exposed to.”
Own Luxury Homes® Research Library
Cite This Research
Brown, Ryan. “Own Luxury Homes® National Luxury Price-to-Income Index™.” Own Luxury Homes®. https://www.ownluxuryhomes.com/markets/national/research-indices/national-luxury-price-to-income-indexMedia: ownluxuryhomes.com/connect · 407-900-7030
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— Ryan Brown, Principal Broker & CEO, Own Luxury Homes® (FL License BK3626873)
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