Median home price: $96,000
Median income: $66,500
Affordability score: 90.6%
In the 20th century, Akron's economy grew in lockstep with the auto industry.
"It was the big rubber capital," said University of Cincinnati professor of finance and real estate Shaun Bond. Tens of thousands of local area residents went to work each day in the plants of Firestone,
Goodyear,
Goodrich and other tire manufacturers.
With factory jobs harder to come by, the Akron metro area has become a slow growth zone. The population has only increased by less than 7% since 1990, a period when the U.S. population soared by about 26%. Even favorite son LeBron James split town for fancy Miami.
And home prices are depressed, down 22% from their 2007 peak, according to NAHB. With family income just above the national median and such beaten down prices, most families can easily afford to buy a place.
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