There was a very interesting blog on Zillow yesterday that talked about how much money the average family has left over every month after paying the mortgage, in different cities around the country.  Check out Zillow’s chart:

The relatively large amount of money left over at the end of the month in cities like Detroit, Atlanta and Dallas is due in large part to relatively low housing prices, which typically translate into relatively low mortgage payments.   Chicago ranks surprisingly high – real estate there is relatively expensive – but incomes there are higher than in many other cities, too.

By now, some of you readers are probably thinking: so rent! The problem is that in cities where mortgage costs are relatively high, rent costs are, too. When my brother was first starting out in LA he rented a very modest one bedroom in a so-so neighborhood that cost him a whopping $1500 a month. In Phoenix you’d pay $500 for comparable digs.