These 15 cities are seeing home prices decline even as affordable properties get harder to find
- US single-family home prices climbed 5% in the first quarter as mortgage rates declined.
- Properties became more expensive in an alarming 93% of metropolitan areas.
- Here are 15 cities where houses got more affordable in early 2024.
Anyone looking for an affordable house now doesn't just need a realtor — they need a miracle.
Existing single-family home prices rose 5% year-over-year to a median of $389,400 in early 2024, according to the National Association of Realtors' first-quarter report released on May 8. That's slightly lower than last quarter's mark of $391,700, which was down from $406,900 in Q3.
Price growth was partially offset by lower mortgage costs, as 30-year fixed rates hung between 6.6% and 6.94% in the first quarter. That's a small win for buyers, considering that rates peaked at 7.8% late last year and were above 7% until mid-December.
However, the typical monthly mortgage payment with a 20% down payment was $2,037 — an improvement from Q4's $2,161 mark, but still 9.3% higher than a year ago.
Families are shelling 24.2% of their income on mortgage payments, which compares to 26.1% last quarter and 23.3% in 2023. For first-time buyers, that figure jumps to 36.5%. While that's down from 39.3% in Q4, it's still prohibitively expensive for many would-be homeowners.
Widespread price gains bring buyers pain
Persistently high home prices stem from a long-standing housing shortage. Houses have been underbuilt across the US since the housing bubble burst in 2008, which has led to bidding wars between buyers while driving up owners' home equity.
Property values benefitted from broad-based growth in the late 2010s, and the trend continued at an even higher rate during the pandemic. From mid-2020 through the third quarter of 2022, between 97% and 100% of the markets tracked by the NAR were up on a year-over-year basis.
At the first sight of lower mortgage rates, that widespread price appreciation has returned — much to the chagrin of buyers who thought they were going to catch a break.
Homes got more costly in a staggering 93% of US cities in early 2024, the NAR found. In the previous three quarters, the percentage of markets with higher home values than the prior year was 86%, 82%, and 58%, which shows that homes on sale are an increasingly rare sight.
"Astonishingly, greater than 90% of the country's metro areas experienced home price growth despite facing the highest mortgage rates in two decades," Lawrence Yun, the chief economist at the NAR, said in a press-release statement for the report. "In the current market, rising prices are the direct result of insufficient housing supply not meeting the full demand."
Prices surged at least 10% in over 60 markets, or nearly a third of the 221 markets surveyed by the NAR. Conversely, prices fell outright only in 15 cities, versus 32 in the fourth quarter of 2023.
15 cities where home prices are down
Below are those 15 US real-estate markets where single-family home prices fell from last year. Along with each city is its home-price change, the median home price in the first quarter of 2024 as well as in the first and fourth quarters of 2023, and the qualifying income needed to buy a house in that market with 20% down payment, according to the NAR.
Year-over-year price change: -15.1%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $135,800
Median home price in Q4 2023: $142,700
Median home price in Q1 2023: $160,000
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $34,424
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -4.6%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $305,800
Median home price in Q4 2023: $315,700
Median home price in Q1 2023: $320,500
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $77,516
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -4.4%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $415,000
Median home price in Q4 2023: $400,000
Median home price in Q1 2023: $434,000
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $105,197
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -3.8%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $351,000
Median home price in Q4 2023: $361,900
Median home price in Q1 2023: $365,000
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $88,974
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -1.7%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $822,400
Median home price in Q4 2023: $849,400
Median home price in Q1 2023: $836,900
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $208,468
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -1.7%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $446,000
Median home price in Q4 2023: $449,700
Median home price in Q1 2023: $453,700
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $113,055
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -1.6%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $180,000
Median home price in Q4 2023: $189,500
Median home price in Q1 2023: $183,000
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $45,628
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -1.3%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $436,100
Median home price in Q4 2023: $424,300
Median home price in Q1 2023: $441,900
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $110,546
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -1.1%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $260,000
Median home price in Q4 2023: $262,900
Median home price in Q1 2023: $262,900
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $65,907
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -1.1%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $127,200
Median home price in Q4 2023: $144,200
Median home price in Q1 2023: $128,600
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $32,244
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -0.9%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $213,600
Median home price in Q4 2023: $211,200
Median home price in Q1 2023: $215,600
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $54,145
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -0.6%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $366,100
Median home price in Q4 2023: $362,500
Median home price in Q1 2023: $368,400
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $92,802
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -0.3%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $466,700
Median home price in Q4 2023: $466,400
Median home price in Q1 2023: $467,900
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $118,302
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -0.2%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $399,000
Median home price in Q4 2023: $394,600
Median home price in Q1 2023: $400,000
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $101,141
Source: National Association of Realtors
Year-over-year price change: -0.1%
Median home price in Q1 2024: $202,800
Median home price in Q4 2023: $200,000
Median home price in Q1 2023: $203,000
Qualifying income needed with 20% down payment: $51,407
Source: National Association of Realtors