Buying a home on a budget? A new study finds grocery prices aren’t the only thing rising due to inflation. As of March 2022, the median listing price for a home in the United States rose to $405,000 — a staggering 26.5 percent increase over last year! So, what does all that cash buy you? That all depends on where you want to live.
While the average square footage for a new single-family home now sits at 2,561 sq. feet, researchers at Point2Homes found that $400,000 will get you less than 300 feet of space in New York City! In a review of the nation’s 100 largest cities, the Big Apple tops the charts as having the most expensive square footage ($1,500). So, if you’re looking to buy instead of rent in the borough of Manhattan, your $400,000 will likely get you a meager 267 sq. feet!
Want more space? There are deals in Michigan and Ohio
It may not be the first place on the average American’s list of places to move, but researchers found that Detroit, Michigan may be the place to move if you want a big house at a good price. In fact, home buyers can expect to get over 5,000 sq. feet of space in both Detroit and Cleveland, Ohio for the national median home price right now!
Ohio also has big homes available in Toledo, where Americans can get 4,444 sq. feet for $400,000. In all three of these cities, the average price of a square foot is less than $100!
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Other cities where you get the most bang for your buck (or 400,000 bucks) include Wichita, Kansas; Fort Wayne, Indiana; Buffalo, N.Y.; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Indianapolis, Indiana; Tulsa, Oklahoma; and Lubbock and El Paso, Texas. All of these cities get home buyers between 3,000 and 4,000 sq. feet of living space for the average home price.
Americans are getting sick of city-living
As rents and mortgage payments increase across the U.S., researchers say big cities are seeing more and more people opt for suburban life.
In fact, studies show Americans started turning away from the constant hustle and bustle of city living long before the pandemic and inflation arrived.
“About one-in-five U.S. adults now express a preference for living in a city, down from about a quarter in 2018. The share of Americans who would like to live in the suburbs has increased from 42% to 46% during this time,” researchers from the Pew Research Center write in a December 2021 report.
How much space $400,000 buys
| City, State | Population 2019 | Median Price/SQFT | How Much Space $400K Buys |
| Detroit, MI | 670,031 | $68.00 | 5,882 sq. ft. |
| Cleveland, OH | 381,009 | $78.00 | 5,128 sq. ft. |
| Toledo, OH | 272,779 | $90.00 | 4,444 sq. ft. |
| Wichita, KS | 389,938 | $104.00 | 3,846 sq. ft. |
| Fort Wayne, IN | 270,402 | $113.00 | 3,540 sq. ft. |
| Buffalo, NY | 255,284 | $119.00 | 3,361 sq. ft. |
| Milwaukee, WI | 590,157 | $122.00 | 3,279 sq. ft. |
| Indianapolis, IN | 876,384 | $123.00 | 3,252 sq. ft. |
| Tulsa, OK | 401,190 | $125.00 | 3,200 sq. ft. |
| Lubbock, TX | 258,862 | $126.00 | 3,175 sq. ft. |
| El Paso, TX | 681,728 | $132.00 | 3,030 sq. ft. |
| Laredo, TX | 262,491 | $135.00 | 2,963 sq. ft. |
| Memphis, TN | 651,073 | $136.00 | 2,941 sq. ft. |
| Omaha, NE | 478,192 | $138.00 | 2,899 sq. ft. |
| Greensboro, NC | 296,710 | $138.00 | 2,899 sq. ft. |
| Kansas City, MO | 495,327 | $139.00 | 2,878 sq. ft. |
| Saint Louis, MO | 300,576 | $141.00 | 2,837 sq. ft. |
| Louisville, KY | 617,638 | $142.00 | 2,817 sq. ft. |
| Cincinnati, OH | 303,940 | $142.00 | 2,817 sq. ft. |
| Lincoln, NE | 289,102 | $143.00 | 2,797 sq. ft. |
| Winston-Salem, NC | 247,945 | $143.00 | 2,797 sq. ft. |
| Baton Rouge, LA | 220,236 | $144.00 | 2,778 sq. ft. |
| Oklahoma City, OK | 655,057 | $146.00 | 2,740 sq. ft. |
| Columbus, OH | 898,553 | $156.00 | 2,564 sq. ft. |
| Baltimore, MD | 593,490 | $156.00 | 2,564 sq. ft. |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 300,286 | $158.00 | 2,532 sq. ft. |
| Arlington, TX | 398,854 | $159.00 | 2,516 sq. ft. |
| San Antonio, TX | 1,547,253 | $161.00 | 2,484 sq. ft. |
| Fort Worth, TX | 909,585 | $161.00 | 2,484 sq. ft. |
| Corpus Christi, TX | 326,586 | $161.00 | 2,484 sq. ft. |
| Lexington-Fayette, KY | 323,152 | $161.00 | 2,484 sq. ft. |
| Garland, TX | 239,928 | $161.00 | 2,484 sq. ft. |
| Jacksonville, FL | 911,507 | $163.00 | 2,454 sq. ft. |
| Houston, TX | 2,320,268 | $170.00 | 2,353 sq. ft. |
| Plano, TX | 287,677 | $177.00 | 2,260 sq. ft. |
| Norfolk, VA | 242,742 | $177.00 | 2,260 sq. ft. |
| Chesapeake, VA | 244,835 | $180.00 | 2,222 sq. ft. |
| Irving, TX | 239,798 | $180.00 | 2,222 sq. ft. |
| Albuquerque, NM | 560,513 | $182.00 | 2,198 sq. ft. |
| Virginia Beach, VA | 449,974 | $192.00 | 2,083 sq. ft. |
| Richmond, VA | 230,436 | $194.00 | 2,062 sq. ft. |
| Newark, NJ | 282,011 | $195.00 | 2,051 sq. ft. |
| Saint Paul, MN | 308,096 | $200.00 | 2,000 sq. ft. |
| Madison, WI | 259,680 | $204.00 | 1,961 sq. ft. |
| Anchorage, AK | 288,000 | $207.00 | 1,932 sq. ft. |
| Philadelphia, PA | 1,584,064 | $208.00 | 1,923 sq. ft. |
| Colorado Springs, CO | 478,221 | $210.00 | 1,905 sq. ft. |
| Raleigh, NC | 474,069 | $210.00 | 1,905 sq. ft. |
| Tucson, AZ | 548,073 | $212.00 | 1,887 sq. ft. |
| Spokane, WA | 222,081 | $213.00 | 1,878 sq. ft. |
| Durham, NC | 278,993 | $214.00 | 1,869 sq. ft. |
| Bakersfield, CA | 384,145 | $215.00 | 1,860 sq. ft. |
| Charlotte, NC | 885,708 | $217.00 | 1,843 sq. ft. |
| North Las Vegas, NV | 251,974 | $218.00 | 1,835 sq. ft. |
| Orlando, FL | 287,442 | $219.00 | 1,826 sq. ft. |
| Fresno, CA | 531,576 | $229.00 | 1,747 sq. ft. |
| Aurora, CO | 379,289 | $235.00 | 1,702 sq. ft. |
| Minneapolis, MN | 429,606 | $236.00 | 1,695 sq. ft. |
| New Orleans, LA | 390,144 | $236.00 | 1,695 sq. ft. |
| Dallas, TX | 1,343,573 | $239.00 | 1,674 sq. ft. |
| Las Vegas, NV | 651,319 | $244.00 | 1,639 sq. ft. |
| Tampa, FL | 399,700 | $249.00 | 1,606 sq. ft. |
| Glendale, AZ | 252,381 | $254.00 | 1,575 sq. ft. |
| Chicago, IL | 2,693,976 | $257.00 | 1,556 sq. ft. |
| Atlanta, GA | 506,811 | $258.00 | 1,550 sq. ft. |