Home prices have surged in the U.S. in recent years. Driven by rising demand and supply constraints during the pandemic, the median home sale price spiked by nearly 50% from the second quarter of 2020 to Q3 in 2022. While the sale price of a typical American home has fallen in recent months since, housing prices remain at historic highs.
Not only have home values soared, but borrowing costs for home buyers have also climbed. The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage has been above 6% since September 2022, a high not seen in nearly a decade and a half. In a market defined by high prices and high mortgage rates, homeownership has become prohibitively expensive for a large number of Americans.
Still, housing prices are also subject to a number of factors that can be isolated from broader, nationwide market trends — and location is one of them. Two homes that are virtually identical can vary in price by hundreds of thousands of dollars, depending on where they are. And for prospective homeowners on a budget, some Tennessee cities are far more affordable than others.
According to five-year estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey, the typical home in Tennessee is worth $232,100. But across the 28 cities, towns, and unincorporated communities in the state with populations of at least 25,000, median home values range from about $137,000 to over $800,000.
In any local market, home prices are often a reflection of what residents can afford. In Tennessee, many of the least expensive cities for homebuyers are not high-income areas. Of the 28 Tennessee cities with available data from the ACS, 11 have a median home value that is less than the statewide median. In all but one of these places, the typical household earns less than the statewide median household income of $64,035. Similarly, most of Tennessee’s more expensive housing markets have higher earning populations.
These are the cheapest and most expensive housing markets in Tennessee.
28. Morristown
Source: Dee / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
- Median home value: $137,100
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.2%
- Homeownership rate: 50.0%
- Median household income: $39,547
- Total population: 30,574
27. Memphis
Source: Sean Pavone / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $139,600
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.7%
- Homeownership rate: 46.6%
- Median household income: $48,090
- Total population: 630,027
26. Bristol
Source: Joel Carillet / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
- Median home value: $165,600
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.4%
- Homeownership rate: 65.9%
- Median household income: $49,130
- Total population: 27,307
25. Jackson
Source: Jacob Boomsma / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $169,300
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.5%
- Homeownership rate: 51.2%
- Median household income: $48,058
- Total population: 67,993
24. Kingsport
Source: DenisTangneyJr / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $181,600
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.4%
- Homeownership rate: 61.8%
- Median household income: $48,228
- Total population: 55,415
23. Knoxville
Source: halbergman / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $184,200
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.4%
- Homeownership rate: 46.2%
- Median household income: $48,309
- Total population: 191,857
22. Oak Ridge
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- Median home value: $211,700
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.2%
- Homeownership rate: 63.5%
- Median household income: $67,152
- Total population: 31,535
21. Clarksville
Source: ChrisBoswell / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $213,200
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.4%
- Homeownership rate: 56.0%
- Median household income: $62,688
- Total population: 167,882
20. Johnson City
Source: DenisTangneyJr / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $215,500
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.5%
- Homeownership rate: 49.7%
- Median household income: $53,173
- Total population: 70,720
19. Cleveland
- Median home value: $225,700
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.9%
- Homeownership rate: 50.3%
- Median household income: $52,468
- Total population: 47,725
18. Chattanooga
Source: Kruck20 / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $230,500
- Homes worth over $1 million: 2.2%
- Homeownership rate: 53.4%
- Median household income: $57,703
- Total population: 181,288
17. Columbia
Source: Michael Vi / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $235,800
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.7%
- Homeownership rate: 63.9%
- Median household income: $58,110
- Total population: 42,474
16. Cookeville
Source: lvreugdenhil / Flickr
- Median home value: $241,200
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.7%
- Homeownership rate: 40.0%
- Median household income: $48,094
- Total population: 34,967
15. La Vergne
Source: somegeekintn / Flickr
- Median home value: $248,300
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.1%
- Homeownership rate: 72.0%
- Median household income: $77,531
- Total population: 38,553
14. Bartlett
Source: Feverpitched / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $251,700
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.7%
- Homeownership rate: 84.7%
- Median household income: $94,603
- Total population: 57,481
13. Maryville
Source: mcpuckette / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $269,500
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.0%
- Homeownership rate: 69.1%
- Median household income: $74,610
- Total population: 31,876
12. Smyrna
Source: 2013 Getty Images / Getty Images Entertainment via Getty Images
- Median home value: $285,200
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.2%
- Homeownership rate: 57.4%
- Median household income: $76,115
- Total population: 53,760
11. Gallatin
- Median home value: $306,100
- Homes worth over $1 million: 2.3%
- Homeownership rate: 59.9%
- Median household income: $68,548
- Total population: 44,947
10. Lebanon
Source: csfotoimages / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
- Median home value: $325,800
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.0%
- Homeownership rate: 59.3%
- Median household income: $63,698
- Total population: 39,562
9. Murfreesboro
Source: csfotoimages / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
- Median home value: $327,400
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.3%
- Homeownership rate: 53.1%
- Median household income: $70,451
- Total population: 153,487
8. Nashville-Davidson
Source: Kruck20 / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $351,400
- Homes worth over $1 million: 5.6%
- Homeownership rate: 53.8%
- Median household income: $71,328
- Total population: 684,103
7. Hendersonville
Source: dan-holland / Wikimedia Commons
- Median home value: $364,700
- Homes worth over $1 million: 2.5%
- Homeownership rate: 71.7%
- Median household income: $86,954
- Total population: 61,589
6. Mount Juliet
Source: Brett Carlsen / Getty Images News via Getty Images
- Median home value: $381,400
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.4%
- Homeownership rate: 75.8%
- Median household income: $108,066
- Total population: 39,525
5. Spring Hill
- Median home value: $389,800
- Homes worth over $1 million: 0.5%
- Homeownership rate: 74.9%
- Median household income: $104,880
- Total population: 51,319
4. Germantown
Source: By Thomas R Machnitzki - Own work, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12863104
- Median home value: $402,300
- Homes worth over $1 million: 4.2%
- Homeownership rate: 87.6%
- Median household income: $140,429
- Total population: 41,094
3. Collierville
Source: By Chase Via - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=110370008
- Median home value: $409,000
- Homes worth over $1 million: 1.5%
- Homeownership rate: 80.5%
- Median household income: $129,729
- Total population: 51,170
2. Franklin
Source: DenisTangneyJr / iStock via Getty Images
- Median home value: $574,000
- Homes worth over $1 million: 8.3%
- Homeownership rate: 63.8%
- Median household income: $106,592
- Total population: 83,630
1. Brentwood
Source: Concord715 / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
- Median home value: $842,400
- Homes worth over $1 million: 31.0%
- Homeownership rate: 91.6%
- Median household income: $181,576
- Total population: 44,830
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