Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT

Calculator

Where Are the Million-Dollar Homes?

A new report reveals which U.S. metropolitan areas have the highest percentage of homes valued at $1 million or more.

In a real estate market where luxury apartments can sell for $100 million or more, we’ve become a bit numb to the value of a mere million. But objectively, $1 million is still about three times the sale price of the median U.S. home (roughly $350,000) — a price very much out of reach for most.

So what makes a house worth a million dollars? While square footage, construction type and quality of finishes will affect value, two homes that are identical on paper can vary wildly in price depending on — you guessed it — location, location, location.

LendingTree recently conducted a study to find out which U.S. metropolitan areas had the highest percentages of owner-occupied homes valued at $1 million or more. While no one area could be shown to have a majority of homes worth a million, San Jose, Calif., home to Silicon Valley tech workers, came closest — with about 47 percent, and the median home value was close too: $968,800. In San Francisco, another tech hub, more than 36 percent of homes were valued at $1 million or more, with a median value of $840,600.

The New York City metropolitan area — where an apartment sold in 2019 for a record $238 million — was fifth on the list, with a median home value of $450,900. (If this number seems low, keep in mind that the metropolitan areas include not just the cities themselves, but also surrounding commuter communities.)

The portion of homes worth $1 million exceeded 10 percent in only five U.S. metropolitan areas, and accounted for less than 1 percent in all 10 metropolitan areas with the lowest percentage of homes in the price bracket, as seen in this week’s chart.

Where Are the Expensive Homes?

The 10 U.S. metropolitan areas among the nation’s 50 largest with the highest percentage of homes valued over $1 million and the 10 with the lowest such percentage.

Greatest Percentage

PERCENTAGE

OF OWNER-OCCUPIED

UNITS OVER $1 MILLION

MEDIAN VALUE

OF OWNER-

OCCUPIED UNITS

METROPOLITAN

AREA

47%

36%

17%

12%

10%

9%

7%

7%

4%

4%

San Jose, Calif.

San Francisco

Los Angeles

San Diego

New York

Seattle

Boston

Washington

Miami

Denver

$968,800

$840,600

$613,400

$563,700

$450,900

$436,100

$437,500

$424,000

$280,400

$380,900

Smallest Percentage

PERCENTAGE

OF OWNER-OCCUPIED

UNITS OVER $1 MILLION

MEDIAN VALUE

OF OWNER-

OCCUPIED UNITS

METROPOLITAN

AREA

0.9%

0.9%

0.9%

0.9%

0.8%

0.7%

0.7%

0.7%

0.7%

0.5%

Kansas City, Mo.

Louisville, Ky.

Memphis

Detroit

Indianapolis

Cincinnati

Columbus, Ohio

Pittsburgh

Cleveland

Buffalo

$183,300

$169,500

$152,200

$170,000

$163,100

$168,900

$184,800

$154,000

$151,600

$148,500

Smallest Percentage

Greatest Percentage

PERCENTAGE

OF OWNER-OCCUPIED

UNITS OVER $1 MILLION

MEDIAN VALUE

OF OWNER-

OCCUPIED UNITS

PERCENTAGE

OF OWNER-OCCUPIED

UNITS OVER $1 MILLION

MEDIAN VALUE

OF OWNER-

OCCUPIED UNITS

METROPOLITAN

AREA

METROPOLITAN

AREA

San Jose, Calif.

San Francisco

Los Angeles

San Diego

New York

Seattle

Boston

Washington

Miami

Denver

Kansas City, Mo.

Louisville, Ky.

Memphis

Detroit

Indianapolis

Cincinnati

Columbus, Ohio

Pittsburgh

Cleveland

Buffalo

47%

36%

17%

12%

10%

9%

7%

7%

4%

4%

0.9%

0.9%

0.9%

0.9%

0.8%

0.7%

0.7%

0.7%

0.7%

0.5%

$968,800

$840,600

$613,400

$563,700

$450,900

$436,100

$437,500

$424,000

$280,400

$380,900

$183,300

$169,500

$152,200

$170,000

$163,100

$168,900

$184,800

$154,000

$151,600

$148,500

Source: LendingTree

By The New York Times

Where For weekly email updates on residential real estate news, sign up here. Follow us on Twitter: @nytrealestate.

A version of this article appears in print on  , Section RE, Page 2 of the New York edition with the headline: Where the Million-Dollar Homes Are. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

Advertisement

SKIP ADVERTISEMENT