Finding an Affordable home.

Certain cities like Boston, LA, & NYC are very pricey, but you can find nice affordable cities. Certain cities like Detroit are cheap, but with high crime and few jobs.

The most affordable city is Indianapolis, Chicago is only five hours away, and the city is flat, but rolling hills are close by on the south side. BTW, the south side is affordable, the north side is expensive. An average house in Indianapolis is $112,000 and household income is over$60,000.
On the minus side, winters are cold as low as 20 below. Crime is low in suburbs, but not downtown.

The second most afforable city is Cincinati. A little more expensive and jobs pay a little less than Indianapolis. It is a very pretty city with rolling hills. On the minus side those hills are no fun in winter.

Third pick is Dallas, a favorite of mine because there are lots of jobs. Houses are a bit more expensive $134,000 on average, and household income is only $55,000, but Dallas is a beautiful futuristic city full of modern buildings and night life. That three bedroom two bath ranch house that cost only $120,000 in Indy will run you $140,000 in Dallas. Still the climate is warmer. On the minus side, Dallas is hot in the summer over 100 degrees.

My pick is Dallas because Texas has no personal income tax so you have more money. A great place is nearby Fort Worth.