How Much House Does $300K Buy You on the East Coast?

One of the most noticeable differences between buying a home on the East Coast with a $300,000 budget compared to spending more money is the square footage starts to shrink. As GOBankingRates data reveals, $300,000 in savings cannot buy more than 2,000 square feet of home in any of the 14 East Coast states.

GOBankingRates referenced existing in-house research outlining how much house you can afford with $300,000 in savings. Additional data includes each state’s median listing price per square foot and housing cost index.

Take a look at how much house you can buy with $300,000 in 14 East Coast states.

• Housing cost-of-living index: 117.2
• Price per square foot: $263
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,143

• Housing cost-of-living index: 96.5
• Price per square foot: $216
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,388

• Housing cost-of-living index: 107.7
• Price per square foot: $241
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,244

• Housing cost-of-living index: 79.2
• Price per square foot: $177
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,691

• Housing cost-of-living index: 135.8
• Price per square foot: $304
• Square feet for $300,000: 986

• Housing cost-of-living index: 82.2
• Price per square foot: $184
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,629

• Housing cost-of-living index: 226
• Price per square foot: $506
• Square feet for $300,000: 593

• Housing cost-of-living index: 116.2
• Price per square foot: $260
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,153

• Housing cost-of-living index: 138.2
• Price per square foot: $310
• Square feet for $300,000: 969

• Housing cost-of-living index: 170.2
• Price per square foot: $381
• Square feet for $300,000: 787

• Housing cost-of-living index: 95.6
• Price per square foot: $214
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,401

• Housing cost-of-living index: 114.4
• Price per square foot: $256
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,171

• Housing cost-of-living index: 86.4
• Price per square foot: $194
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,550

• Housing cost-of-living index: 103.8
• Price per square foot: $233
• Square feet for $300,000: 1,290

Methodology: For this study, GOBankingRates analyzed each state to find out how much house $300,000 can afford. First, GOBankingRates found the median listing price per square foot in the U.S. as sourced from the Federal Reserve of St. Louis for the month of November 2024. Next, GOBankingRates found the housing cost index for each state as sourced from the Missouri Economic and Research Information Center for Q3 of 2024. Using this data, the price per square foot for each state was calculated. All data was collected on and is up to date as of Jan. 3, 2025.