12 Cities Where You Can Find Huge Homes for Under $300,000

These sizable, affordable homes could be in a city near you.

By Cynthia Measom Mar 15, 2022 Real Estate Investing 101

Well into the first quarter of 2022, it’s still a seller’s market and home prices are still at all-time highs in many cities. The median list price for a home in the U.S. as of January 2022 was $423,300, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau.

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But don’t despair — if you have a growing family and you’re looking for a sizable home for much less than the U.S. median list price, you’re in luck. GOBankingRates has done the research to find 12 cities where you can find huge homes for under $300,000.

To uncover this data, GOBankingRates used Zillow’s January 2022 median list price data to find U.S. cities with median list prices under the $300,000 mark. Then, it used Zillow’s active listing database to find homes both under this price point and above 2,500 square feet.

Read on to find two examples of homes above 2,500 square feet and below $300,000 for each of the 12 U.S. cities, plus, the average price per square foot when both examples are averaged together. If you’re thinking about moving to the Midwest, now might be the time!

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Toledo, Ohio

January 2022 median list price: $154,600
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,714
Price of #1 home: $125,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,246
Price of #2 home: $175,000
Average price per square foot: $44

Detroit, Michigan

January 2022 median list price: $221,800
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 4,404
Price of #1 home: $250,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,848
Price of #2 home: $195,000
Average price per square foot: $54

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Milwaukee, Wisconsin

January 2022 median list price: $193,267
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,664
Price of #1 home: $184,900
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,244
Price of #2 home: $265,000
Average price per square foot: $66

Louisville, Kentucky

January 2022 median list price: $282,349
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,600
Price of #1 home: $210,900
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,165
Price of #2 home: $234,900
Average price per square foot: $66

Cleveland, Ohio

January 2022 median list price: $189,433
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 4,263
Price of #1 home: $225,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 2,384
Price of #2 home: $195,900
Average price per square foot: $67

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Little Rock, Arkansas

January 2022 median list price: $223,333
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 4,188
Price of #1 home: $219,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,470
Price of #2 home: $295,000
Average price per square foot: $69

Rochester, New York

January 2022 median list price: $205,633
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 4,625
Price of #1 home: $265,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,056
Price of #2 home: $269,900
Average price per square foot: $73

Wichita, Kansas

January 2022 median list price: $250,000
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,750
Price of #1 home: $265,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,344
Price of #2 home: $285,000Average price per square foot: $78

Syracuse, New York

January 2022 median list price: $171,600
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,581
Price of #1 home: $299,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 2,672
Price of #2 home: $219,900
Average price per square foot: $83

El Paso, Texas

January 2022 median list price: $262,313
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,058
Price of #1 home: $250,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 3,072
Price of #2 home: $298,000
Average price per square foot: $89

Look: 10 Surprisingly Affordable Housing Markets Across America

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McAllen, Texas

January 2022 median list price: $259,967
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 2,808
Price of #1 home: $265,000
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 2,774
Price of #2 home: $299,000
Average price per square foot: $101

Columbia, South Carolina

January 2022 median list price: $293,775
#1 home under $300,000 square feet: 2,820
Price of #1 home: $269,900
#2 home under $300,000 square feet: 2,697
Price of #2 home: $299,900
Average price per square foot: $103

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Methodology: For this piece, GOBankingRates first used Zillow’s January 2022 median list price data to discover the U.S. cities with median list prices below $300,000. With these cities isolated, GOBankingRates then used Zillow’s active listing database to find homes under $300,000 and above 2,500 square feet. For a city to qualify, it had to have 5 homes under $300,000 AND above 2,500 square feet. GOBankingRates provided two examples and averaged the price per square feet of both examples or ranking. All data was collected and is up to date as of March 9, 2022.

About the Author

Cynthia Measom

Cynthia Measom is a personal finance writer and editor with over 12 years of collective experience. Her articles have been featured in MSN, AOL, Yahoo Finance, INSIDER, Houston Chronicle, The Seattle Times and The Network Journal. She attended the University of Texas at Austin and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English.