| Most Expensive | 2008 Avg. Sales Price | Most Affordable |
2008 Avg. Sales Price |
||
| 1 | La Jolla, CA | $1,841,667 | Sioux City, IA | $133,459 | |
| 2 | Greenwich, CT | $1,787,000 | Jackson, MI | $134,325 | |
| 3 | Beverly Hills, CA | $1,777,475 | Akron, OH | $135,780 | |
| 4 | Palo Alto, CA | $1,740,333 | Canton, OH | $139,667 | |
| 5 | Santa Monica, CA | $1,653,333 | Grayling, MI | $141,000 | |
| 6 | Santa Barbara, CA | $1,599,667 | Minot, ND | $142,000 | |
| 7 | Newport Beach, CA | $1,546,250 | Arlington, TX | $143,775 | |
| 8 | San Francisco, CA | $1,513,181 | Muncie, IN | $144,250 | |
| 9 | Boston, MA | $1,493,750 | Killeen, TX | $145,812 | |
| 10 | San Mateo, CA | $1,366,475 | Eau Claire, WI | $147,300 |
One of the most interesting and useful comparisons for national home prices is no doubt the annual Coldwell Banker Home Price Comparison Index. It isn’t the average or median price in these cities: this one provides an apples-to-apples comparison of similar 2,200 square foot, four-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath homes in 315 markets across the United States, plus other areas and countries.
Remember, all of the prices you are looking at here are for similar homes – the only real variation being location. A similar home in La Jolla ($887 a square foot) costs almost fourteen times as much as one in Sioux City, Iowa ($60 a foot). Wow. It looks like it is: Location, location, location.
Here is a link to an article showing various tables and graphs from Market Watch.