How Much House Does $500K Buy You in the South?

Future homeowners with $500,000 in savings will find it’s their best bet to shop for a home in the Southern states. Not only do these 16 states offer a lower cost of living than other U.S. regions, this money buys more than 2,000 square feet of home in each of these states. You can even stretch this savings out and buy homes that have over 3,000 square feet in Alabama, Mississippi and West Virginia.

A recent GOBankingRates study outlined how much house you can afford on a $500,000 budget, and here we will isolate the costs in the Southern states. A full methodology is available at the end of this article.

Keep reading to find out how much house $500,000 can buy you in the South.

• Housing cost-of-living index: 71.4
• Price per square foot: $160
• Square feet for $500,000: 3,126

• Housing cost-of-living index: 75.2
• Price per square foot: $168
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,968

• Housing cost-of-living index: 96.5
• Price per square foot: $216
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,313

• Housing cost-of-living index: 107.7
• Price per square foot: $241
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,073

• Housing cost-of-living index: 79.2
• Price per square foot: $177
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,818

• Housing cost-of-living index: 77.8
• Price per square foot: $174
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,869

• Housing cost-of-living index: 84.4
• Price per square foot: $189
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,645

• Housing cost-of-living index: 82.2
• Price per square foot: $184
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,716

• Housing cost-of-living index: 72.2
• Price per square foot: $162
• Square feet for $500,000: 3,092

• Housing cost-of-living index: 95.6
• Price per square foot: $214
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,335

• Housing cost-of-living index: 74.7
• Price per square foot: $167
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,988

• Housing cost-of-living index: 86.4
• Price per square foot: $194
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,584

• Housing cost-of-living index: 82.8
• Price per square foot: $185
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,696

• Housing cost-of-living index: 81.3
• Price per square foot: $182
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,746

• Housing cost-of-living index: 103.8
• Price per square foot: $233
• Square feet for $500,000: 2,150

• Housing cost-of-living index: 61.3
• Price per square foot: $137
• Square feet for $500,000: 3,641

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 United States, 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.