These Towns Have Home Values That Rival America’s Most Expensive Metros

Written by  Matt Schulz

Edited by  Dan Shepard

+ 1 More

Updated Aug 10, 2026

Towns have a reputation for being quieter, slower and, perhaps most importantly, more affordable than cities. But when it comes to buying a home, that perception doesn’t always hold true.

A LendingTree analysis found that some U.S. towns have some of the country’s highest housing values. In Nantucket, Mass., for example, the median home value is nearly $1.6 million — higher than in San Jose, Calif., the nation’s most expensive major metro.

While some of these towns command eye-popping prices, others are relatively affordable. We examined not only where home values are highest, but also how those prices stack up against local incomes to identify where buying a home is most and least attainable.

3 towns stand head and shoulders above the rest when it comes to home values

Living in a town doesn’t necessarily mean paying less to buy a home. In some cases, home values in towns can be outrageously high, even as pricey as any city in the U.S.

Our analysis found that Nantucket, Mass., Vineyard Haven, Mass., and Jackson, Wyo., have the highest median home values among U.S. towns. Median home values in those communities are $1,593,800, $1,165,800 and $1,075,500, respectively. 

Those prices are high by any standard. Nantucket’s median home value exceeds that of San Jose, Calif. ($1,447,800), the nation’s most expensive major metro. Vineyard Haven’s median home value is higher than that of San Francisco ($1,140,700), the second priciest metro, while Jackson’s is only slightly lower. 

Among the 10 priciest towns, Nantucket and Vineyard Haven are the only two east of the Mississippi River. Expanding the list to the 50 most expensive towns, Colorado and Wyoming account for 11 entries — six in Wyoming and five in Colorado.  

Several factors likely contribute to the high home values in Nantucket and Vineyard Haven, including wealthy second-home buyers, limited housing supply and strong seasonal tourism. Census Bureau data shows that 55.0% of housing units in Nantucket and 54.4% in Vineyard Haven are used for seasonal, recreational or occasional purposes — the highest shares among all U.S. towns and metros. Among the nation’s 10 most expensive towns, only Breckenridge, Colo., comes close, at 45.8%. 

America’s 10 most expensive towns for homes: Seasonal housing and vacancy rates

While some towns have exceptionally high home values, many remain relatively affordable

The seven-figure home values in Nantucket, Vineyard Haven and Jackson are outliers among the towns we analyzed. While those three each topped $1 million in median home value, about two-thirds of the towns in our analysis have median home values below $400,000. In 14 towns, the median home value is less than $300,000. 

Winnemucca, Nev., Gillette, Wyo., and Brattleboro, Vt., have the lowest median home values among the towns we analyzed, at $278,300, $279,100 and $279,600, respectively. Lewisburg, Tenn. ($279,800), and Bennington, Vt. ($279,900), aren’t much higher. Combined, the median home values in those five towns total $1.397 million — still less than the median home value in Nantucket alone.

Home values in these towns are comparable to those in San Antonio, where the median home value is $278,800. The Texas city has long been considered one of the most affordable major cities.

Despite relatively high incomes, residents of the most expensive towns still face the greatest affordability challenges

To measure home affordability, we compared median home values with median household incomes to calculate a home value-to-income ratio for each town and metro. Higher ratios indicate lower affordability.

Our analysis found that the most expensive towns are also the least affordable. Nantucket, Vineyard Haven and Jackson have median home value-to-income ratios of 11.4, 9.3 and 9.1, respectively. That means median home values are more than nine times median household incomes in each community. Median household incomes are $139,688, $125,786 and $118,796, respectively. 

Those ratios are sky-high, exceeding those in San Jose and San Francisco, the nation’s most expensive major metros, at 8.9 and 8.4, respectively.

How can that be? The simplest explanation might be that the buyers of these high-value homes aren’t year-round residents. Vacation-home buyers and real estate investors can increase local home values, but because they aren’t counted as residents, their incomes aren’t reflected in local median household income figures. That can widen the gap between home values and resident incomes.

Relative to incomes, Gillette, Wyo., and Williston, N.D., offer the most affordable homebuying opportunities among the towns analyzed

While the least affordable towns are largely in New England and the West, the most affordable towns on our list are geographically diverse. They range from Vermont to Nevada and from Minnesota to Texas.

Gillette (3.1) and Williston, N.D. (3.3), rank as the most affordable in our analysis, both with home value-to-income ratios less than one-third of Nantucket’s. Los Alamos, N.M., Red Wing, Minn., and Winnemucca follow closely, each with a ratio of 3.4.  

In four of these five towns — all except Los Alamos — median home values are $285,100 or less, while median household incomes range from $80,000 to $90,000 a year. Those four towns rank in the top half of the 50 towns analyzed for median household income, while their median home values rank among the 10 lowest. That combination makes homeownership comparatively attainable.

Los Alamos stands apart. It has the highest median household income of any town in our analysis ($147,139), but it also has the 10th-highest median home value ($495,800). The town is home to Los Alamos National Laboratory, a major scientific research institution whose concentration of highly paid scientists, engineers and other professionals likely contributes to both elevated incomes and higher home values.

Nation’s most expensive towns

Buying a home? Focus on affordability, not just price

This analysis shows that a home’s sticker price tells only part of the story. Some towns have home values that rival those in the nation’s largest cities, while others remain surprisingly affordable. 

Whether you’re buying in a town, a suburb or a major metro, these strategies can help improve affordability:

Methodology

LendingTree researchers analyzed the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2024 American Community Survey (ACS) five-year estimates. Analysts used micropolitan-level data for areas with populations ranging from 10,000 to 49,999 to approximate town-level data. 

Median home values, median household incomes and population estimates were obtained for each qualifying micropolitan area. Researchers identified the 50 micropolitan areas with the highest median home values and calculated the home value-to-income ratio for each by dividing its median home value by its median household income. The larger the ratio, the more expensive homes are relative to that area’s median household income.

To provide additional context, each micropolitan area was compared with the most similar metro among the nation’s 50 most populous metropolitan statistical areas based on median home value.

Researchers also analyzed vacancy rates and the share of housing units classified as “for seasonal, recreational or occasional use” in the nation’s most expensive micropolitan areas.