In the end, buying a home all comes down to dollars and cents, and Atlanta’s qualifying incomes differ in interesting ways with the rest of the U.S.

To qualify for a mortgage on a 5 percent down payment, Atlanta homebuyers can expect a qualifying income of around $34,655, according to a new analysis by the National Association of Realtors; furthermore, qualifying incomes fall to $32,831 with 10 percent down and $29,183 with 20 percent down.

There are some interesting details in NAR’s data, including:

• Despite the size and prominence of its market place, qualifying incomes remain relatively low in Atlanta; for instance, they are lower than that of Houston and a mere fifth of what the poor residents of San Francisco must show, where a 5 percent down payment comes with a whopping $163,256 qualifying income.
• In an interesting sign of seasonality, qualifying incomes were lower in 2014’s fourth quarter (the basis for NAR’s analysis) than the third quarter; for instance, with a 20 percent down payment, qualifying incomes in Atlanta dropped from $31,374 to the present $29,183.

Check out our graph below for a fuller picture of the qualifying income landscape: