Home prices have started to decline, and in some parts of the country, they already have dropped rapidly. However, prices remain near record levels in some states and cities. For people who want homes that are cheap now, there are a few places they can look for a new place to live. The least expensive state in which to own a home is West Virginia, one of the poorest states in the country.
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Using data from the World Population Review, Los Feliz looked at home prices based on two yardsticks. The first was the average square footage of homes in the state. The other is the median home price. Then this was compared to the average household income and the average income compared to home prices. The authors wrote, “When compared to the average household income of $65,332, West Virginians have the best ratio of average earnings to property prices, with average household income equivalent to 50.6% of the cost of a typical house.”
In West Virginia, the average home price was $128,103. The average price per square foot was $75. Three other states had an average price per square foot under $100. These were Mississippi ($84), Arkansas ($95) and Oklahoma ($98).
Each of these states has among the lowest median income across all states. The national median is $70,784. West Virginia’s is $46,836. Mississippi’s is $46,637. Arkansas’s is $50,784, while Oklahoma’s is $60,096.
These four states are among those with the highest poverty rates. The national poverty rate in 2021 was 13.4%. In Mississippi, the number was 20.4%. In West Virginia, it was 17.6%, in Arkansas 17.0% and in Oklahoma 15.7%.
All this shows that the cheapest homes are in the poorest states, which is not surprising.
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