Believe it or not, housing is actually becoming more affordable in a variety of major cities across the U.S., despite the fact that home prices in America are on the rise as a whole. In these cities, aspiring homeowners might now be able to purchase homes they couldn’t afford the previous year.
We compared the change in the home median list value of the 200 most populous U.S. cities over the past year, two years and three years to determine the major cities where home prices are plummeting.
15. Austin, Texas
- March 2017 median list price: $390,000
- March 2018 median list price: $389,000
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$1,000
Despite — or maybe because of — its decreasing home prices, Austin continues to be a hot real estate market. As of April 2018, the demand for homes was higher than the available inventory in the mid-Texas city, according to the Austin Board of Realtors.
14. Tulsa, Okla.
- March 2017 median list price: $165,000
- March 2018 median list price: $163,740
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$1,260
It’s a great time for buyers to get more bang for their buck in Tulsa, Okla., Gannon Brown with McGraw Realtors told the city’s NBC affiliate. Brown also said that homes priced below $250,000 tend to sell very quickly in Tulsa, so if you want to get an affordable home there you should move fast. Then do some home upgrades that won’t blow your budget to quickly increase your new home’s value.
13. Naperville, Ill.
- March 2017 median list price: $435,238
- March 2018 median list price: $433,495
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$1,743
Until recently, home prices in Naperville were rising due to a demand for homes in family-friendly communities outside of Chicago. But they’re now on the downturn. The city features a well-developed downtown area and a historical district.
12. Fort Wayne, Ind.
- March 2017 median list price: $146,900
- March 2018 median list price: $144,900
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$2,000
Not only does Fort Wayne have increasingly affordable homes, but with an overall low cost of living, it’s one of the best places to live on only a Social Security check, a separate study found.
Take advantage of low housing prices in Fort Wayne while you can. The city is the 10th-hottest housing market in the U.S. as of May 2018, according to Realtor.com. That marks a 20-spot jump from the previous month.
11. Overland Park, Kan.
- March 2017 median list price: $399,000
- March 2018 median list price: $395,000
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$4,000
Older homes could be the main factor behind Overland Park’s decrease in home prices. Many residents in the area have been flipping their homes in order to appeal to buyers seeking move-in ready homes, Kansas City’s Fox News affiliate reported.
10. Richmond, Va.
- March 2017 median list price: $239,000
- March 2018 median list price: $234,900
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$4,100
Although listing prices are lower than they were the previous year in Richmond, competition between buyers is high due to high demand and low inventory. This means that homes have been selling for above asking price in some areas, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported.
9. Toledo, Ohio
- March 2017 median list price: $79,694
- March 2018 median list price: $74,900
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$4,794
Home sales have been down in Toledo in recent months, The Blade reported, which could mean sellers are lowering prices to appeal to buyers. Toledo is one of the major cities with cheap homes: It now has the second-lowest median home prices of all the cities included in this list.
8. San Antonio
- March 2017 median list price: $234,500
- March 2018 median list price: $229,500
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$5,000
San Antonio is known for its affordable and family-friendly real estate, and homes have become even more affordable in the Southern city in the past year. Home prices have remained low despite an influx of new residents — 24,000 people in the last year alone — Bisnow reported.
7. Shreveport, La.
- March 2017 median list price: $164,900
- March 2018 median list price: $159,900
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$5,000
Home prices in Louisiana as a whole have increased over the past year, but they’ve decreased in Shreveport. Many of the homebuyers in the city are first-time buyers, KTBS, the local ABC affiliate, reported.
6. Birmingham, Ala.
- March 2017 median list price: $79,900
- March 2018 median list price: $69,000
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$10,900
Although home prices in Birmingham were higher than in Toledo in March 2017, thanks to a large drop in prices, Birmingham now has the most affordable homes of any of the cities on this list. Perhaps due in part to its more affordable housing, home sales in the city are also up from the previous year, according to data from the Alabama Center for Real Estate.
5. Honolulu
- March 2017 median list price: $650,000
- March 2018 median list price: $639,000
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$11,000
Honolulu is one of the few U.S. real estate markets where inventory is growing, according to the May National Housing Report from Re/Max. Although Honolulu home prices have dropped, they are still among the highest of all the cities included in this list.
4. Lafayette, La.
- March 2017 median list price: $239,000
- March 2018 median list price: $224,000
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$15,000
Low home prices plus a booming market make Lafayette a hot housing market for millennials. More than 56 percent of homebuyers in the Southern city are now millennials, the local ABC affiliate, KATC, reported.
3. Greenville, S.C.
- March 2017 median list price: $277,000
- March 2018 median list price: $260,000
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$17,000
Although prices in Greenville have decreased significantly over the past year, the median home list price might still make homes out of reach for lower- and lower middle-income families in the area, Greenville News reported.
2. Santa Rosa, Calif.
- March 2017 median list price: $579,000
- March 2018 median list price: $550,000
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$29,000
A main contributor to the dip in Santa Rosa home list prices were the Northern California fires, which took place in October 2017 and destroyed thousands of homes. Home listings in the area reached a low in January 2018, according to a Trulia report.
1. Arlington, Va.
- March 2017 median list price: $679,000
- March 2018 median list price: $645,000
- Year-over-year change in median listing price: -$34,000
Arlington is the city where home prices have plummeted the most — though it still has the highest median list price of all the cities included in this list. Overall, the real estate market in Arlington has remained flat, according to data from Northern Virginia Housing Market.
Cities Becoming More Affordable for Homebuyers
Most of the cities with the biggest home price drops are located in the South, with the Midwest being the second-best area to find cities where home prices are plummeting. The two geographical outliers are Santa Rosa, Calif., and Honolulu.
If you are interested in buying a new home in one of these cities, your first step is setting up a timeline with goals and deliverables. Next, get your finances in order. This means making sure your credit score is high, you have enough savings to cover a down payment and closing costs and you’ve been pre-approved for a mortgage.
Then, you can secure a real estate agent, and begin the home searching and buying process.
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