Yes, it is still possible to buy a home for less than $100,000. Not only that, but there are such homes in metro areas like New York and Atlanta, not just in some out-of-the-way crossroads where the nearest airport may be more than 100 miles distant. You might need a treasure map to find one, but they are out there.
What a home buyer gets for the money varies. In some metros $100,000 does not buy many square feet. In others, the homes available at that price often need a lot of work (and money) to fix up; and in others, a buyer might find a home that is move-in ready.
Danielle Hale, chief economist at Realtor.com, warns:
Bargains definitely exist. But buyers should go in with their eyes open. In some of those areas, $100,000 can buy a pretty decent home that maybe needs a little bit of updating. In others, it might be a home that needs an awful lot of work and might be in not-yet-up-and-coming neighborhoods.
Here is Realtor.com’s list of the 10 U.S. metropolitan areas with the most homes for sale under $100,000. Note that this is a total number, not a percentage. The researchers noted the median listing price for a home in each city as of April 1 and the number of homes listed for less than $100,000 as of March 1. We’ve added the total number of housing units in each metro area as of 2017 from estimates at proximityone.com to give some idea of how rare such homes are.
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Median home listing price: $179,950
Number listed at less than $100,000: 2,656
Total housing units in metro area: 1.13 million - Detroit, Michigan
Median home listing price: $245,050
Number listed at less than $100,000: 2,478
Total housing units in metro area: 1.91 million - Chicago, Illinois
Median home listing price: $299,550
Number listed at less than $100,000: 2,397
Total housing units in metro area: 3.84 million - St. Louis, Missouri
Median home listing price: $207,550
Number listed at less than $100,000: 2,227
Total housing units in metro area: 1.26 million - Cleveland, Ohio
Median home listing price: $175,050
Number listed at less than $100,000: 1,779
Total housing units in metro area: 962,000 - Birmingham, Alabama
Median home listing price: $219,950
Number listed at less than $100,000: 1,169
Total housing units in metro area: 517,300 - New York City, New York
Median home listing price: $523,740
Number listed at less than $100,000: 1,155
Total housing units in metro area: 7.98 million - Memphis, Tennessee
Median home listing price: $195,050
Number listed at less than $100,000: 1,135
Total housing units in metro area: 571,800 - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Median home listing price: $249,950
Number listed at less than $100,000: 1,087
Total housing units in metro area: 2.49 million - Atlanta, Georgia
Median home listing price: $330,888
Number listed at less than $100,000: 1,087
Total housing units in metro area: 2.3 million
Visit the Realtor.com website for more information on what’s available in these cities.
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