Vibrant, youthful and packed with plenty to do, college towns can be great places to live — and with a never-ending stream of potential renters, they’re also fantastic spots for investment properties.
Outside of a large number of student housing options, there is ample opportunity for the college student population or other residents to make solid real estate investments.
GOBankingRates conducted a study that analyzed the cost of living, home values, mortgage payments and more in the biggest college town in every state. Here are some key takeaways:
- The most expensive estimated average mortgage payment comes from Cambridge, Massachusetts with a whopping $10,683 a month.
- The city with the largest percentage of people in college or a graduate program is 65.5% for State College, Pennsylvania.
- Berkeley, Boulder, Honolulu, Cambridge and Hanover all have average home values over the $1 million mark.
Many of the cities listed have multiple colleges as well as a major university. Keep reading to learn what it takes to own a home in the most college-centric town in every state.
Troy, Alabama: Home to Troy University
- Population: 17,757
- Percentage of population in college: 31.00%
- Household median income: $38,783
- Average home value: $185,187
- Average mortgage cost: $1,134
Fairbanks, Alaska: Home to the University of Alaska Fairbanks
- Population: 32,496
- Percentage of population in college: 7.00%
- Household median income: $69,914
- Average home value: $292,005
- Average mortgage cost: $1,787
Flagstaff, Arizona: Home to Northern Arizona University
- Population: 76,177
- Percentage of population in college: 29.10%
- Household median income: $65,652
- Average home value: $684,866
- Average mortgage cost: $4,192
Fayetteville, Arkansas: Home to the University of Arkansas
- Population: 95,022
- Percentage of population in college: 22.40%
- Household median income: $56,881
- Average home value: $357,764
- Average mortgage cost: $2,190
Berkeley, California: Home to the University of California, Berkeley
- Population: 121,385
- Percentage of population in college: 27.30%
- Household median income: $104,716
- Average home value: $1,538,238
- Average mortgage cost: $9,416
Boulder, Colorado: Home to the University of Colorado
- Population: 106,598
- Percentage of population in college: 30.90%
- Household median income: $80,243
- Average home value: $1,188,427
- Average mortgage cost: $7,275
Hartford, Connecticut: Home to Trinity College and Uconn
- Population: 121,057
- Percentage of population in college: 9.70%
- Household median income: $41,841
- Average home value: $231,873
- Average mortgage cost: $1,419
Dover, Delaware: Home to Deleware State University
- Population: 38,879
- Percentage of population in college: 15.20%
- Household median income: $54,438
- Average home value: $321,989
- Average mortgage cost: $1,971
Gainesville, Florida: Home to the University of Florida
- Population: 142,414
- Percentage of population in college: 35.40%
- Household median income: $43,783
- Average home value: $319,828
- Average mortgage cost: $1,958
Athens, Georgia: Home to the University of Georgia
- Population: 126,672
- Percentage of population in college: 26.90%
- Household median income: $47,798
- Average home value: $334,112
- Average mortgage cost: $2,045
Honolulu, Hawaii: Home to the University of Hawaii at Manoa
- Population: 348,547
- Percentage of population in college: 7.60%
- Household median income: $82,772
- Average home value: $1,320,402
- Average mortgage cost: $8,083
Rexburg, Idaho: Home to Brigham Young University
- Population: 38,803
- Percentage of population in college: 54.00%
- Household median income: $46,286
- Average home value: $412,607
- Average mortgage cost: $2,526
Macomb, Illinois: Home to Western Illinois University
- Population: 15,207
- Percentage of population in college: 28.70%
- Household median income: $35,064
- Average home value: $101,626
- Average mortgage cost: $622
Upland, Indiana: Taylor University
- Population: 3,963
- Percentage of population in college: 36.70%
- Household median income: $67,813
- Average home value: $208,476
- Average mortgage cost: $1,276
Ames, Iowa: Home to Iowa State University
- Population: 66,265
- Percentage of population in college: 44.30%
- Household median income: $57,428
- Average home value: $309,723
- Average mortgage cost: $1,896
Manhattan, Kansas: Home to Kansas State University
- Population: 54,287
- Percentage of population in college: 33.30%
- Household median income: $55,316
- Average home value: $264,386
- Average mortgage cost: $1,618
Morehead, Kentucky: Home to Morehead State University
- Population: 7,001
- Percentage of population in college: 47.30%
- Household median income: $32,020
- Average home value: $151,658
- Average mortgage cost: $928
Ruston, Louisiana: Home to Louisiana Tech University
- Population: 22,282
- Percentage of population in college: 31.30%
- Household median income: $32,877
- Average home value: $214,451
- Average mortgage cost: $1,313
Farmington, Maine: Home to the University of Maine at Farmington
- Population: 4,318
- Percentage of population in college: 29.70%
- Household median income: $40,350
- Average home value: $259,536
- Average mortgage cost: $1,589
College Park, Maryland: Home to the University of Maryland
- Population: 34,416
- Percentage of population in college: 51.60%
- Household median income: $76,973
- Average home value: $446,382
- Average mortgage cost: $2,732
Cambridge, Massachusetts: Home to MIT and Harvard University
- Population: 117,962
- Percentage of population in college: 23.90%
- Household median income: $121,539
- Average home value: $1,745,218
- Average mortgage cost: $10,683
Ann Arbor, Michigan: Home to the University of Michigan
- Population: 122,216
- Percentage of population in college: 36.10%
- Household median income: $78,546
- Average home value: $533,630
- Average mortgage cost: $3,267
Duluth, Minnesota: Home to the University of Minnesota and Lake Superior College
- Population: 86,772
- Percentage of population in college: 15.90%
- Household median income: $63,545
- Average home value: $258,142
- Average mortgage cost: $1,580
Oxford, Mississippi: Home to the University of Mississippi
- Population: 25,713
- Percentage of population in college: 24.70%
- Household median income: $56,784
- Average home value: $345,046
- Average mortgage cost: $2,112
Columbia, Missouri: Home to the University of Missouri
- Population: 126,172
- Percentage of population in college: 23.10%
- Household median income: $60,455
- Average home value: $298,775
- Average mortgage cost: $1,829
Bozeman, Montana: Home to Montana State University
- Population: 53,500
- Percentage of population in college: 24.80%
- Household median income: $74,113
- Average home value: $822,254
- Average mortgage cost: $5,033
Wayne, Nebraska: Home to Wayne State College
- Population: 5,973
- Percentage of population in college: 33.10%
- Household median income: $51,399
- Average home value: $205,849
- Average mortgage cost: $1,260
Reno, Nevada: Home to the University of Nevada
- Population: 265,196
- Percentage of population in college: 8.60%
- Household median income: $73,073
- Average home value: $557,948
- Average mortgage cost: $3,415
Hanover, New Hampshire: Home to Dartmouth College
- Population: 8,234
- Percentage of population in college: 49.60%
- Household median income: $111,958
- Average home value: $1,044,110
- Average mortgage cost: $6,391
Princeton, New Jersey: Home to Princeton University
- Population: 30,450
- Percentage of population in college: 28.30%
- Household median income: $176,695
- Average home value: $967,775
- Average mortgage cost: $5,924
Las Cruces, New Mexico: Home to New Mexico State University
- Population: 111,273
- Percentage of population in college: 13.40%
- Household median income: $51,013
- Average home value: $286,500
- Average mortgage cost: $1,754
Syracuse, New York: Home to Syracuse University
- Population: 146,134
- Percentage of population in college: 16.20%
- Household median income: $43,584
- Average home value: $179,513
- Average mortgage cost: $1,099
Greenville, North Carolina: Home to East Carolina University
- Population: 87,894
- Percentage of population in college: 23.60%
- Household median income: $47,485
- Average home value: $254,133
- Average mortgage cost: $1,556
Grand Forks, North Dakota: Home to the University of North Dakota
- Population: 58,935
- Percentage of population in college: 20.40%
- Household median income: $59,079
- Average home value: $264,555
- Average mortgage cost: $1,619
Athens, Ohio: Home to Ohio University
- Population: 22,698
- Percentage of population in college: 59.20%
- Household median income: $34,493
- Average home value: $223,978
- Average mortgage cost: $1,371
Stillwater, Oklahoma: Home to Oklahoma State University
- Population: 48,644
- Percentage of population in college: 40.90%
- Household median income: $39,998
- Average home value: $240,104
- Average mortgage cost: $1,470
Corvallis, Oregon: Home to Oregon State University
- Population: 60,050
- Percentage of population in college: 33.10%
- Household median income: $61,610
- Average home value: $546,527
- Average mortgage cost: $3,345
State College, Pennsylvania: Home to Penn State
- Population: 40,902
- Percentage of population in college: 65.50%
- Household median income: $43,459
- Average home value: $386,204
- Average mortgage cost: $2,364
Providence, Rhode Island: Home to Providence College and Brown University
- Population: 189,715
- Percentage of population in college: 14.00%
- Household median income: $61,365
- Average home value: $383,327
- Average mortgage cost: $2,346
Columbia, South Carolina: Home to the University of South Carolina
- Population: 136,754
- Percentage of population in college: 18.30%
- Household median income: $54,095
- Average home value: $231,564
- Average mortgage cost: $1,417
Vermillion, South Dakota: Home to the University of South Dakota
- Population: 11,667
- Percentage of population in college: 37.10%
- Household median income: $47,813
- Average home value: $235,830
- Average mortgage cost: $1,444
Martin, Tennessee: Home to the University of Tennessee at Martin
- Population: 10,823
- Percentage of population in college: 27.90%
- Household median income: $38,235
- Average home value: $194,175
- Average mortgage cost: $1,189
College Station, Texas: Home to Texas A&M University
- Population: 120,451
- Percentage of population in college: 39.90%
- Household median income: $52,397
- Average home value: $350,767
- Average mortgage cost: $2,147
Ogden, Utah: Home to Weber State University
- Population: 86,754
- Percentage of population in college: 7.10%
- Household median income: $66,226
- Average home value: $393,998
- Average mortgage cost: $2,412
Middlebury, Vermont: Home to Middlebury College
- Population: 6,913
- Percentage of population in college: 42.30%
- Household median income: $76,420
- Average home value: $432,608
- Average mortgage cost: $2,648
Lexington, Virginia: Home to Washington and Lee and University
- Population: 7,346
- Percentage of population in college: 50.20%
- Household median income: $93,651
- Average home value: $315,081
- Average mortgage cost: $1,929
Pullman, Washington: Home to Washington State University
- Population: 31,972
- Percentage of population in college: 49.90%
- Household median income: $41,479
- Average home value: $426,916
- Average mortgage cost: $2,613
Morgantown, West Virginia: Home to West Virginia University
- Population: 30,220
- Percentage of population in college: 42.60%
- Household median income: $41,103
- Average home value: $272,821
- Average mortgage cost: $1,670
Whitewater, Wisconsin: Home to University of Wisconsin
- Population: 15,725
- Percentage of population in college: 47.30%
- Household median income: $46,135
- Average home value: $307,925
- Average mortgage cost: $1,885
Laramie, Wyoming: Home to the University of Wyoming
- Population: 31,735
- Percentage of population in college: 33.10%
- Household median income: $50,539
- Average home value: $356,762
- Average mortgage cost: $2,184
Methodology: For this study, GOBankingRates analyzed each state to find cities with major college populations to find the cost of an average home in each college town. Using Niche.com’s College List, GOBankingRates created a list of college towns in each state. For each city a number of factors were found including; total population, total households, population attending college or graduate school, and median household income sourced from the US Census American Community Survey. The average home value for single family homes from March 2024 was sourced from Zillow Home Value Index, assuming a 10% downpayment, and using the national 30-year fixed mortgage rate as sourced from the Federal Reserve Economic Data, the average mortgage cost can be calculated for each college town. For each city the average expenditure costs were calculated by finding the cost of living indexes as sourced from Sperling’s BestPlaces and using the average expenditure costs to find the average expenditure costs in each city. Adding the expenditure costs to the mortgage cost gives and average total cost of living. The livability index was sourced from AreaVibes for each city and is included as supplemental information. The population in college or graduate programs was used to calculate percent population in college or graduate programs. The states were sorted to show the highest percent populated of the college town attending college or graduate programs. All data was collected on and is up-to-date as-of May 8th, 2024.
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