First-Time Homebuyers May Want to Check Here First

With the pandemic showing signs of waning, plans that were put on hold are starting to gain new life. If you've been mulling buying your first home, some US cities may hold more promise than others. WalletHub looked at 300 cities of varying sizes across America, examining nearly two dozen metrics in three main categories: affordability, including what a city's cost of living is; real estate market, which covers such factors as the rate at which millennials are scooping up residences; and quality of life, which looks at everything from a city's weather and schools to its job market and crime rate. Chesapeake, Va., takes the No. 1 spot, and three other cities from Virginia break the top 10. Meanwhile, in the bottom 10, nine of the cities lie in one state. Check out which cities make up each end of the spectrum:

Best Cities for First-Time Homebuyers

1. Chesapeake, Va.
2. Gilbert, Ariz.
3. Lincoln, Neb. (No. 1 in "Quality of Life" category)
4. Cape Coral, Fla.
5. Boise, Idaho
6. Hampton, Va.
7. Peoria, Ariz.
8. Virginia Beach, Va.
9. Norfolk, Va.
10. Surprise, Ariz.

Worst Cities for First-Time Homebuyers

291. Boston
292. Burbank, Calif.
293. Glendale, Calif.
294. Santa Barbara, Calif.
295. San Mateo, Calif.
296. Los Angeles
297. Santa Monica, Calif.
298. San Francisco
299. Oakland, Calif.
300. Berkeley, Calif.

See the rest of WalletHub's list here. (Don't miss the best cities in America for families.)