The Most Affordable U.S. Homes Saw a 9% Price Increase in June

The most affordable third of U.S. homes saw a price increase of 8.7 percent year over year in June, according to Redfin.

But San Jose and Orange County are two of just three metro areas in the U.S. where home prices for the most affordable group of homes fell in June. The other is Memphis, where home prices for the most affordable tier fell 6.6 percent year over year to an average of $78,808 in June.

Elsewhere across the country, the price trend for the most affordable group of homes is the opposite: Prices for the most affordable third of homes nationwide were rising quickly in June while supply was shrinking. Contrast that with the most expensive third of homes, which are seeing prices rise slightly as supply grows by double digits.

Prices were up 8.7 percent year over year in June for the most affordable third of homes nationwide (those priced up to $232,000), the second-biggest increase in more than a year (the highest was last month, with an 8.9% growth rate). For homes in the most expensive third (more than $385,000), prices grew just 1.1 percent year over year. Even when the overall real estate market cooled in late 2018 and early 2019, it didn’t cool much for the most affordable tier: Price growth for the most affordable group of homes hasn’t dropped below 4.5 percent in at least the last seven years.

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