Chart of real estate market value in US regions by price per square foot
Potential homebuyers have had little say in the price of homes for sale in recent years, but that could be changing. Inventory has increased and more homes are going unsold, shifting some of the power back to the buyer.
According to Realtor.com, the number of listings increased 37% from June 2023 to June 2024, the eighth consecutive month of growth.
Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com, recently told USA TODAY that buyers are increasingly seeing more affordable homes on the market. This positive trend for buyers is a drastic shift away from high asking prices and competitive bidding wars.
USA TODAY has previously reported on which real estate markets have the most affordable homes under $200,000, but where can Americans get more for their money, or more home for their money?
Graphics and maps explain: Which US state has the highest real estate prices?
How much house do you get for your money?
Last year, 666,000 single-family homes were built and sold in the U.S., according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The median home price was $428,600 and the median size of newly built homes was 2,286 square feet.
To find out how far your money will go when buying a home, USA TODAY looked at the average price per square foot for single-family homes. The lower the price per square foot, the further the buyer’s money will go.
The median price per square foot for new single-family homes last year was $154.70. This amount varies across the United States:
- Northeast: $220.95 per square foot
- Midwest: $156.25 per square foot
- South: $146.64 per square foot
- West: $195.38 per square foot
Affordable homes in the USA: Homes under $200,000 are still out there
Real estate prices are rising, but buyers have more options
At the beginning of the year, the median value of homes sold in the U.S. was $420,800 – a 53% increase from the same period last year. Although the choice of homes has increased, potential buyers still need more money to purchase a home today than in pre-pandemic years, USA TODAY reported.
Homes are more expensive now than in 2019, but the intense period of rising prices has slowed. The national median asking price increased by 0.3% year-on-year since May this year. Over the same period, the price per square meter increased by 3.8%.
“The proportion of smaller and more affordable homes has grown, helping to keep the average price low even as prices per square foot continue to rise,” Hale said.
The median price per square foot for new single-family homes in the Northeast and West has increased exponentially since the pandemic. As of 2023, new single-family homes in the Northeast had the highest median price per square foot.
What are the most common features of new homes sold?
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development collects data on the features of new homes sold. One of the most common features of new homes sold was central air conditioning. About 99% of the 666,000 new homes sold in 2023 had air conditioning. This data point reflects Americans’ desire to stay cool during increasingly hot and brutal summers.
New homes sold are also getting larger. The average size of a new single-family home in 2023 was 2,233 square feet. That’s about 17% larger than three decades earlier, when the average home size was 1,905 square feet. About half of all new single-family homes sold had four or more bedrooms.
Although Americans are looking for more space when purchasing a new home, the average household size has declined, according to data from the Census Bureau.
Contributor: Daniel de Visé, USA TODAY
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