SAN DIEGO - Southern California households on average fall nearly $60,000 short of the qualifying annual income needed to buy a median-priced home in the region, according to a report released Wednesday.

The quarterly report from the California Association of Realtors shows that the median home price in the Southland for the first quarter of 2005 was $477,660, while a median household income was $52,050. That's less than half what it would take to afford a median-priced home, for which monthly payments, taxes and insurance would total about $2,780, according to CAR.

Statewide, what the association calls the Homebuyer Income Gap Index increased 44.9 percent during the first quarter of 2005 compared to the first quarter of 2004.

That means California households earning the median annual income of $53,540 are $60,380 short of the $113,920 annual income needed to qualify for a loan for a median-priced home in the state, priced at $488,600.

In calculating affordability, the association assumes a 20 percent down- payment. CAR considers a monthly payment affordable if the payment —including taxes and insurance — is no more than 30 percent of a household's income.

"These numbers are particularly troubling for would-be first-time homebuyers, who often are locked out of homeownership because of the lack of affordable homes for sale," CAR President Jim Hamilton said.

"While home sales statewide continue to surge, the California real estate market is being dominated by repeat homebuyers, who account for three out of four home purchases in the state," he said.

According to the report, potential homebuyers in the Central Valley, with a median household income of $41,040, had the smallest income gap at $32,660. They need a qualifying income of $73,700 to purchase a median-priced home at $316,100.

The Bay area had the highest gap in the state at $92,930. Potential homebuyers there had a median household income of $67,770 but needed qualifying income of $160,700 to purchase a median-priced home at $689,240.