For many, buying a house is a pipe dream no matter where in the US you're looking — but in some cities, the average family is locked out of purchasing a home in every single neighborhood.

Creditnews Research wanted to know which areas are out of reach for married couples earning a median income, so they analyzed real estate data from a range of sources, and ranked the country's 50 most populous cities based on the share of neighborhoods that are unaffordable for the average household.

Los Angeles, Boston, St. Louis and San Jose are the most unaffordable cities overall; 100 percent of their neighborhoods are too pricey for the average married couple to buy a home in. At the other end of the scale are Cleveland, Hartford and Memphis, where households with a median income can afford a house in any neighborhood.

None of the cities analyzed saw their neighborhoods increase in affordability post-pandemic, and California was home to the biggest increase in unaffordable neighborhoods since before COVID hit.

When it comes to the cities whose share of unaffordable neighborhoods have spiked the most since pre-COVID times, San Jose (70 percentage points), San Diego (57.8 percentage points), and Riverside-San Bernardino (51.9 percentage points) top the list.

Via Creditnews Research.

[Image credit: Osman Rana]