The COVID-19 pandemic has ushered in an unprecedented surge in demand for homes in the United States. Inventory of homes for sale hit a record low, as did the average time homes are on the market. Meanwhile, both home prices and the share of homes selling above asking price reached record highs.
Of course, in some parts of the country, high home prices are nothing new. Even before the pandemic, the majority of states had at least one metropolitan area where the value of most homes exceeded a quarter million dollars.
Using data on median home value from the U.S. Census Bureau, 24/7 Wall St. identified the most expensive metro area to buy a home in every state. It is important to note that Delaware, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont have only one metropolitan area each, and as a result, these metro areas rank as the most expensive place to buy a home by default only. The prices listed here are for 2019, the most recent year of available data from the Census Bureau.
While every county on this list has expensive homes relative to the rest of the state, not all counties have expensive homes relative to the U.S. as a whole. In states where median home values are generally low, even the most expensive metro can be relatively inexpensive in comparison to the nation. In 14 states, the most expensive metro area has a median home value below the $240,500 national median. Here is a look at how much home you can buy for $200,000 in every state.
Home values in a given area are often a reflection of what residents can afford. And not surprisingly, the vast majority of the metros on this list have a median household income that exceeds the median across the state as a whole. Here is a look at the richest town in every state.
Click here to see the most expensive metro to buy a home in every state
Click here to read our detailed methodology
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