The Cheapest Neighborhoods in the 30 Biggest US Cities

Life in many big cities is financially out of reach for anyone who isn’t incredibly well off. The cost of housing alone can make the prospects of living in one of America’s most populous urban centers a pipe dream. And the housing market has been on a wild ride through the pandemic. Despite economic hardship in the early days, when locking down businesses nearly sent the economy into recession, the housing market really didn’t cool, and in fact, even accelerated in rising home prices.

While the housing market may be stabilizing some, housing is not exactly cheap. But if you know the right neighborhoods to move to in some big cities, you can get lucky and find an affordable home and still enjoy the benefits of city life.

That’s the motivation behind a GOBankingRates study highlighting the neighborhoods in American metropolises that offer the most budget-friendly options for housing. Taking 30 of the largest cities in the country and ranking them by population, the study identified three neighborhoods in each city where the cost of buying and renting is lowest.

To determine these costs, GOBankingRates used Zillow’s rent index and home value index with 2023 data — both of which use weighted results from listings and sales data to give a more accurate reflection of the expected costs in a specific housing market. These areas might not be a magic bullet that allows you to buy a spacious home in one of America’s priciest cities, but they might remedy a difficult budget or offer a realistic cure for that long commute.

So, take a look and see where in America you can buy and rent housing for less.

• Park Hill
  • Average home value: $731,215
• Stapleton
  • Average home value: $469,655
• Mariner’s Harbor
  • Average home value: $477,818

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• Watts
  • Average home value: $520,950
• Southeast Los Angeles
  • Average home value: $557,589
• Central City
  • Average home value: $574,807

• Riverdale
  • Average home value: $73,409
• Golden Gate
  • Average home value: $77,574
• Eden Green
  • Average home value: $82,834

• Clinton Park Tri-Community
  • Average home value: $142,639
• South Park:
  • Average home value: $144,937
• Harrisburg – Manchester:
  • Average home value: $145,560

• McGuire
  • Average home value: $56,677
• Fairhill
  • Average home value: $57,280
• Upper Kensington
  • Average home value: $60,268

• Maryvale
  • Average home value: $307,329
• Central City
  • Average home value: $324,097
• South Mountain
  • Average home value: $345,422

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• San Juan Gardens
  • Average home value: $103,209
• Greater Gardendale
  • Average home value: $114,056
• Las Palmas
  • Average home value: $114,857

• Barrio Logan
  • Average home value: $532,341
• Colina del Sol
  • Average home value: $532,757
• Teralta East
  • Average home value: $548,336

• South Boulevard-Park Row Historic
  • Average home value: $140,639.67
• Cedar Crest
  • Average home value: $144,813.33
• Southeast Dallas
  • Average home value: $175,468.00

• East San Jose
  • Average home value: $991,175
• Fairgrounds
  • Average home value: $1,006,632
• Edenvale – Seven Trees
  • Average home value: $1,010,672

• Franklin Park
  • Average home value: $326,506
• North Lamar
  • Average home value: $339,447
• Georgian Acres
  • Average home value: $344,177

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• Phoenix
  • Average home value: $89,804
• Tallyrand
  • Average home value: $93,570
• Fairfield
  • Average home value: $93,942

• Morningside Park
  • Average home value: $142,085
• South Fort Worth
  • Average home value: $146,482
• Burchill
  • Average home value: $147,448

• East Linden
  • Average home value: $98,942
• Devon Triangle
  • Average home value: $101,618
• East Columbus Gateway
  • Average home value: $102,626

• Meadows
  • Average home value: $94,458
• Martindale-Brightwood
  • Average home value: $96,029
• Near Westside
  • Average home value: $99,827

• Sunnydale
  • Average home value: $859,421
• Hunters Point
  • Average home value: $862,504
• Bret Harte
  • Average home value: $882,074

• Thomasboro-Hoskins
  • Average home value: $207,422
• Capitol Drive
  • Average home value: $208,921
• University Park
  • Average home value: $212,422

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• South Park
  • Average home value: $533,384
• Rainier View
  • Average home value: $581,164
• South Delridge
  • Average home value: $446,556.00

• Elyria Swansea
  • Average home value: $381,579
• Westwood
  • Average home value: $391,998
• Globeville
  • Average home value: $400,413

• Fairfax Village
  • Average home value: $252,175
• Barry Farm
  • Average home value: $309,478
• Knox Hill
  • Average home value: $333,534

• Lake Country
  • Average home value: $217,057
• Vista Lane
  • Average home value: $232,736
• Justin Towne
  • Average home value: $233,825

• Chamizal
  • Average home value: $98,302
• San Juan
  • Average home value: $104,550
• Magoffin
  • Average home value: $118,286

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• Shidler-Wheeler
  • Average home value: $76,296
• Airline
  • Average home value: $77,527
• Westlawn Gardens
  • Average home value: $78,290

• Mattapan
  • Average home value: $523,069
• Hyde Park
  • Average home value: $571,672
• Roxbury
  • Average home value: $615,470

• Sumner
  • Average home value: $374,569
• Lents
  • Average home value: $393,867
• Centennial
  • Average home value: $397,819

• West End
  • Average home value: $34,922
• Airport Sub
  • Average home value:$36,877
• Hawthorne Park
  • Average home value: $37,411

• Downtown East
  • Average home value: $273,153
• Parkland
  • Average home value: $278,757
• Wyandotte
  • Average home value: $279,284

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• Shelby Forest-Frayser
  • Average home value: $79,235
• Berclair-Highland Heights
  • Average home value: $91,901
• Downtown
  • Average home value: $96,121

• Park Hill
  • Average home value: $53,660
• Portland
  • Average home value: $57,307
• California
  • Average home value: $57,700

• Booth-Boyd
  • Average home value: $32,754
• Carrollton Ridge
  • Average home value: $35,774
• Shipley Hill
  • Average home value: $37,371

Jordan Rosenfeld contributed to the reporting of this article.

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