A recent study has concluded that housing costs across the country have gotten so high that only 41 percent of counties are affordable to the average person, reported MarketWatch.

Researchers looked at median home prices and ownership expenses such as insurance and taxes across 499 countries. They then compared these costs to the average weekly pay for households with two wage earners. If the costs exceeded 28 percent of income, the market was deemed to be unaffordable.

Using this method, the researchers determined that home ownership is affordable to the average person in only 41 percent of counties. What's more, prices are still trending upward. The study found that 55 percent of the total counties analyzed had become less affordable than the historical average at the close of 2020, compared to 43 percent in 2019 and 33 percent three years ago. 

The largest metropolitan areas where owning a home is still affordable for the average household include Chicago, Houston, Philadelphia, Cleveland and Tampa, Fla.