Top 25 States Where Homes Are Becoming More Valuable

If you’re looking to buy a home, it’s smart to analyze the real estate market by state. You might want to buy in a state where real estate values are rising, so you can get the highest return on investment if you eventually decide to sell.

To determine the states where real estate values are increasing the most and least, GOBankingRates analyzed the change in home values over the last five years in all 50 states plus Washington, D.C., with rankings based on monthly, quarterly, yearly and five-year changes.

Click through to see where home values are rising the most and least.

The states where real estate values are increasing the least, or even decreasing, display some patterns and similarities. States with older homes have seen little increase in home values.

Click through to see the homes values in states where growth has been slow.

Current median home value: $182,300

Although home prices in New Mexico are not increasing as quickly year over year as the national average, the median home value reached its highest point ever in September 2017, according to data from the Realtors Association of New Mexico.

A separate GOBankingRates study on real estate by state found that New Mexico is the 10th best state for first-time homebuyers.

Current median home value: $166,900

North Carolina is home to one of the worst cities to own investment property, a separate GOBankingRates study found. Winston-Salem ranked as the seventh-worst city in the U.S. to own investment property because its home values have experienced little increase year over year, and it has a very low employment growth rate as well.

Current median home value: $149,300

The low rate of increase in home values in South Carolina could actually benefit buyers. The state’s real estate transactions climbed 4.5 percent in 2017, according to the South Carolina Association of Realtors. A robust job market and higher incomes are also contributing to the increase in homebuyers, The Post and Courier reported. Plus, South Carolina is one of the states that require the lowest ideal salary to buy a home.

Current median home value: $548,600

Even though real estate values are increasing less in Washington, D.C., than elsewhere, it’s still one of the places where 50 percent of Americans can’t afford a home, a separate GOBankingRates study found.

Current median home value: $170,100

Wisconsin might not be the best state to buy investment property. Not only is it one of the states where home values are increasing the least, but Milwaukee is a particularly bad choice for real estate investors due to its weak employment and population growth, a separate GOBankingRates study found.

Current median home value: $202,600

An exodus of working professionals is likely causing the stagnancy of home prices in Wyoming. The state lost thousands of workers in 2017 across multiple industries, a separate GOBankingRates study found.

Current median home value: $131,000

Home sales in Ohio have been slowing down in the last year: January 2018 sales were down 3.3 percent from the previous year, according to the Ohio Association of Realtors.

Current median home value: $123,000

Although the five-year change in home values in Arkansas is just over 3 percent, the year-over-year increase in home values in the state is nearly double at 6.03 percent.

Current median home value: $145,500

One factor that might be contributing to home prices in Missouri increasing at a low rate is that a lot of the homes in the state are older, with the majority of homes dating back to the 1950s, according to Zillow.

Current median home value: $126,000

If you’re considering buying in Indiana, now might be the time to do it. Fort Wayne has become one of the 20 hottest housing markets as of February 2018, according to Realtor.com. Home values have increased 5.26 percent year over year in the state.

Current median home value: $131,600

Despite the state’s overall low rate of change, Iowa’s capital city of Des Moines has been experiencing a growth in its housing market in recent years, with record home prices and many new buyers purchasing entry-level homes, the Des Moines Register reported in May 2017.

Current median home value: $138,700

Kentucky had a record-breaking year for real estate in 2017; however, sales were down in November and December 2017 and January 2018 compared to the same month’s sales in the year prior, the Northern Kentucky Tribune reported.

Current median home value: $312,400

Home values are growing so slowly in New Jersey that they have yet to reach pre-recession levels. It’s one of the states that haven’t recovered from the Great Recession, a previous GOBankingRates study found.

Current median home value: $170,700

The current median home value in Illinois is the same as it was in January 2004. Year over year, home values rose only 2.52 percent.

Current median home value: $163,400

The age of homes in Pennsylvania could be affecting their potential for value increases. Most of the homes in the state were built in the 1950s, according to Zillow.

Current median home value: $128,400

Kansas is also home to many older homes, with the majority of the homes in the state dating back to the 1950s, according to Zillow. This could affect the potential for home values to rise.

Current median home value: $117,000

Oklahoma’s home values have actually decreased 0.09 percent month over month. Year over year, values increased only 1.92 percent.

Current median home value: $273,500

Maryland’s median home value is now equivalent to the state’s median home value in May 2005. Home values rose only 2.01 percent year over year.

Current median home value: $128,000

One plus of Alabama’s home values increasing at a slow rate is that homes are still affordable for most families. The University of Alabama’s Alabama Housing Affordability Index for the fourth quarter of 2017 found that an Alabama family earning the statewide median income had a little over 1.8 times the income needed to qualify for a loan to purchase a median-priced home.

Current median home value: $273,700

It’s a good time for buyers in Alaska. Inventory of real estate is strong. Anchorage, in particular, is at its highest level of housing inventory in five years, while sales prices in the state have dropped the most since the Great Recession in 2008, according to multiple-listing-service data analyzed by the Alaska Journal of Commerce.

Current median home value: $104,100

West Virginia has the lowest median home value by state, and values have only increased 2.06 percent year over year.

Current median home value: $246,300

Home values have been increasing at a low rate in Virginia over the last five years, but a low inventory in Northern Virginia could start to drive prices up, Alexandria News reported.

Current median home value: $223,100

Home values have actually been decreasing in Virginia, with a –0.18 percent change month over month and a –1.37 percent change quarter over quarter. It’s the only state that’s experienced a drop in both measurements of real estate values by state.

Current median home value: $246,800

Connecticut has the lowest five-year change in home values of all the states. A contributing factor could be that the state has a lot of older homes, with the majority of houses in the state dating back to the 1950s, according to Zillow.

Current median home value: $201,500

Although home prices have increased overall in North Dakota over the last five years, they have seen a dip in the last year, with a –0.79 percent decrease in year-over-year home values.

The list of states where home values are increasing the most includes many of the usual suspects — that is, Pacific, Mountain and Southwest states — that have been generally seeing heavy migration and increases in housing metrics in recent years, as well as some wildcards.

Click through to find out the states where home values increased the most.

Current median home value: $253,600

In New Hampshire, home values are continuing to increase — albeit not by much — while inventory continues tighten, according to data from the New Hampshire Association of Realtors.

Current median home value: $213,200

Minnesota is home to the best city for aspiring millennial homeowners, a previous GOBankingRates study found. Although home prices are relatively high in Minneapolis, it still has affordable mortgages, plus high salaries and employers that offer job perks, which appeals to young buyers.

Current median home value: $386,500

Many people already can’t afford homes in Massachusetts. A separate GOBankingRates study found that 75.7 percent of households would not be able to afford a home in Boston.

Current median home value: $147,100

Tennessee overall has seen home values rise at a high rate, and the rate is even higher in some areas. Nashville has seen double-digit growth in home values over the last two years, a 2017 GOBankingRates study found.

Current median home value: $120,400

Mississippi experienced its first seller’s market in years in 2017 thanks to sales prices rising and the time that it takes to find a buyer decreasing, the SunHerald reported.

Current median home value: $157,200

Nebraska experienced one of the smallest dips in real estate prices caused by the recession, according to data from CoreLogic. And while home prices have increased less than 5 percent over the last five years, they increased over 24 percent from 2007 to 2017, a previous GOBankingRates study found.

Current median home value: $180,900

Sioux Falls, S.D., has recently experienced a housing boom, the Associated Press reported. The city is hoping the real estate boom will be followed by a boom in businesses in the area.

Current median home value: $162,100

Thanks to rising home values, Atlanta is one of the best cities to own an investment property, a separate GOBankingRates study found. The city also has experienced strong growth in population and employment.

Current median home value: $212,200

Now is a good time to sell a home in Montana. In the state capital of Helena, real estate prices are up and inventory is low, the Independent Record reported.

Current median home value: $624,200

Hawaii has the highest median real estate prices by state, and values are rising.

Current median home value: $268,000

Even though home prices are going up, sales are going up in Rhode Island too. Home sales increased in Rhode Island for the fifth consecutive year in 2017, according to the Rhode Island Association of Realtors.

Current median home value: $309,100

Home prices in New York, and particularly New York City, have become unaffordable for most households. A separate GOBankingRates study found that 71 percent of households in NYC can’t afford to own a home there.

Current median home value: $219,700

Maine home prices increased 9.85 percent year over year, though the volume of sales has remained flat, the Portland Press Herald reported.

Current median home value: $175,200

Home values are rising, but housing is still relatively affordable in Texas, which is home to three of the best areas for aspiring millennial homebuyers: Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio, a separate GOBankingRates study found.

Current median home value: $200,300

Although home values have risen month over month and year over year in Idaho, they dropped 0.35 percent quarter over quarter.

Current median home value: $233,400

Even though home values in Arizona are rising, they still haven’t reached pre-recession levels, a separate GOBankingRates study found.

Current median home value: $138,700

Real estate prices are increasing, while inventory remains low, making for a very competitive housing market in Michigan, MLive reported.

Current median home value: $217,300

Florida is home to the hottest neighborhood for real estate in the U.S., a separate GOBankingRates study found. Jungle Terrace in St. Petersburg saw home prices nearly double from 2016 to 2017.

Current median home value: $264,100

Rising home values in Utah might not be a good thing: The state is currently facing an affordable housing crisis, the Deseret News reported.

Current median home value: $320,500

Oregon has a limited real estate inventory, plus an influx of people coming in, the Source Weekly reported. People originally flocked to Oregon to escape the high housing costs of places like California, CNBC reported; however, many of those people might not be able to afford homes now, as rising demand and decreasing supply have led to home prices continuing to rise.

Current median home value: $348,400

While the median home value in Colorado is nearly $350,000, it’s even greater in the Denver metro area: $400,000 as of February 2018. Home prices continue to rise in Denver, as does inventory, Denver’s ABC affiliate reported.

Current median home value: $529,900

California home prices are rising, and it’s known to be one of the most expensive places to live. This is just one of the many reasons California real estate differs from every other state.

Current median home value: $355,600

Seattle is one of the hottest housing markets in the U.S., and the state as a whole is also booming in terms of home values. This could be due to an influx of people who have moved to the state for tech jobs, as Seattle has become the top tech market after San Francisco, GeekWire reported.

Current median home value: $245,900

Delaware has experienced the greatest home value increases month over month (2.33 percent), quarter over quarter (8.33 percent) and year over year (14.48 percent) of all the states.

Current median home value: $261,000

Nevada has the largest five-year change in home values of all the states. It’s also one of the states experiencing a potential housing bubble, found a separate GOBankingRates study.

Overall, real estate values have increased in the U.S. by 5.91 percent over the last five years and 6.68 percent year over year. The current national median home value is $207,600.

State by state, real estate values have been affected by factors such as supply and demand — states that have seen a heavy influx of migration tend to see increasing home values — and the age of homes in the state, with states with older homes tending to see slower increases in values.

Click through to find out the best and worst states to build a home.

Methodology: GOBankingRates analyzed all 50 U.S. states plus Washington, D.C., and scored in terms of four factors: (1) Month-over-month change in Zillow median home value, weighted half because this tends to be more volatile than longer intervals; (2) Quarter-over-quarter change in Zillow median home value, weighted half because this tends to be more volatile than longer intervals; (3) Year-over-year change in Zillow median home value, weighted double; (4) Five-year change in Zillow median home value, weighted double. Median home value data represent all homes as of January 2018, the most updated data available.