July 12, 2024, 5:30 a.m. ET
Prospective home buyers have had very little leverage over the price of homes for sale in recent years, but that could be changing. Inventory has been rising and more homes are sitting unsold, shifting some power back to the buyer.
The number of listings increased by 37% from June 2023 to June 2024, according to Realtor.com, the eighth consecutive month of growth.
Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com, recently told USA TODAY that buyers are beginning to see more affordable homes on the market. This positive trend for buyers is a drastic shift away from steep asking prices and competitive bidding wars.
USA TODAY previously reported on which housing markets have the most affordable homes under $200,000 available. But where can American’s get more bang for their buck or more house for their money?
How much home can you get for your money?
Last year 666,000 single-family homes were built and sold in the U.S., according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau. The median home price was $428,600 and the median size of new homes built was 2,286 square feet.
In order to identify how far your money can go when purchasing a house, USA TODAY looked at the median price per square foot of a single family home. The lower the price per square foot, the further a buyer’s money goes.
The median price per square foot of new single family homes sold last year was $154.70. Here is how that amount varies across the U.S.:
- Northeast: $220.95 per square foot
- Midwest: $156.25 per square foot
- South: $146.64 per square foot
- West: $195.38 per square foot
Home prices on the rise, but buyers have more options
At the beginning of the year, the median value of homes sold in the U.S. was $420,800 – an increase of 53% from a decade prior. Although the number of homes to chose from has improved, prospective buyers still need more money to buy a house now compared to pre-pandemic years, USA TODAY reported.
Homes are more expensive now than in 2019, but the intense period of rising prices has slowed down. The national median listing price increased by 0.3% from May of this year compared to a year prior. During that same time period, price per square foot rose 3.8%.
“The share of inventory of smaller and more affordable homes has grown, which helps hold down the median price even as per-square-foot prices grow further,” said Hale.
Median price per square foot of new single-family homes in the Northeast and West has grown exponentially since the pandemic. As of 2023, new single family homes in the northeast had the highest median price per square foot.
What are the most common features of new homes sold?
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development tracks data on the features of new homes sold. One of the most common characteristics of new homes sold was central air conditioning. About 99% of the 666,000 new homes sold in 2023 had AC. This data point is reflective of American’s desire to stay cool during increasingly hot and brutal summers.
New homes sold are also getting bigger in size. The median size of a new single-family home was 2,233 square feet in 2023. That’s about 17% bigger than three decades prior when the median home was 1,905 square feet. About half of all new single family homes sold had four or more bedrooms.
While Americans are looking for more space when purchasing a new home, the average household size shrunk, Census Bureau data shows.
Contributing: Daniel de Visé, USA TODAY
