Special Report
The Cheapest and Most Expensive Housing Markets in Arizona
Published:
Home prices have surged in the U.S. in recent years. Driven by rising demand and supply constraints during the pandemic, the median home sale price spiked by nearly 50% from the second quarter of 2020 to Q3 in 2022. While the sale price of a typical American home has fallen in recent months since, housing prices remain at historic highs.
Not only have home values soared, but borrowing costs for home buyers have also climbed. The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage has been above 6% since September 2022, a high not seen in nearly a decade and a half. In a market defined by high prices and high mortgage rates, homeownership has become prohibitively expensive for a large number of Americans.
Still, housing prices are also subject to a number of factors that can be isolated from broader, nationwide market trends — and location is one of them. Two homes that are virtually identical can vary in price by hundreds of thousands of dollars, depending on where they are. And for prospective homeowners on a budget, some Arizona cities are far more affordable than others.
According to five-year estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey, the typical home in Arizona is worth $321,400. But across the 38 cities and towns in the state with populations of at least 25,000, median home values range from only about $156,000 to more than $650,000.
In any local market, home prices are often a reflection of what residents can afford. In Arizona, many of the least expensive cities for homebuyers are not high-income areas. Of the 38 Arizona cities with available data from the ACS, 20 have a median home value that is less than the statewide median. In all but six of these places, the typical household earns less than the statewide median household income of $72,581. Similarly, most of Arizona’s more expensive housing markets have higher earning populations.
Rank | Places in Arizona with at least 25,000 residents | Median home value ($) | Homeownership rate (%) | Median household income ($) | Total Population |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Scottsdale | 651,800 | 67.0 | 104,197 | 240,537 |
2 | Catalina Foothills | 560,400 | 74.2 | 110,660 | 50,573 |
3 | Queen Creek | 493,700 | 88.6 | 127,182 | 61,788 |
4 | Prescott | 473,900 | 69.4 | 66,330 | 46,054 |
5 | Flagstaff | 466,600 | 43.1 | 65,652 | 76,177 |
6 | Gilbert | 454,300 | 74.7 | 115,179 | 267,267 |
7 | Chandler | 423,900 | 64.6 | 99,374 | 275,618 |
8 | Oro Valley | 404,500 | 76.7 | 101,394 | 47,053 |
9 | Goodyear | 396,100 | 77.8 | 97,307 | 97,542 |
10 | Peoria | 383,600 | 75.0 | 86,759 | 191,292 |
11 | Tempe | 382,100 | 40.7 | 72,022 | 181,005 |
12 | Lake Havasu City | 363,300 | 74.3 | 64,027 | 57,294 |
13 | Surprise | 352,600 | 78.4 | 87,756 | 145,591 |
14 | Marana | 347,700 | 82.8 | 105,624 | 52,542 |
15 | Prescott Valley | 341,900 | 71.2 | 66,617 | 47,015 |
16 | Buckeye | 341,700 | 85.3 | 94,188 | 95,042 |
17 | Phoenix | 340,200 | 56.4 | 72,092 | 1,609,456 |
18 | Mesa | 327,700 | 63.2 | 73,766 | 503,390 |
19 | Sun City West | 316,900 | 87.9 | 61,941 | 26,639 |
20 | Sahuarita | 314,600 | 80.5 | 97,133 | 34,238 |
21 | Glendale | 310,000 | 57.2 | 66,375 | 248,083 |
22 | Avondale | 306,000 | 59.6 | 76,496 | 89,214 |
23 | San Tan Valley | 304,000 | 80.4 | 88,466 | 101,207 |
24 | Florence | 298,900 | 82.7 | 74,025 | 25,783 |
25 | Maricopa | 292,300 | 82.9 | 88,795 | 59,605 |
26 | Casas Adobes | 281,000 | 65.6 | 75,997 | 69,917 |
27 | El Mirage | 246,800 | 68.6 | 72,134 | 35,652 |
28 | Sun City | 233,600 | 83.5 | 51,263 | 37,748 |
29 | Kingman | 220,100 | 64.5 | 56,360 | 33,052 |
30 | Casa Grande | 219,900 | 69.8 | 64,535 | 55,186 |
31 | Tucson | 218,200 | 50.9 | 52,049 | 541,033 |
32 | Sierra Vista | 215,900 | 61.5 | 70,899 | 45,212 |
33 | Drexel Heights | 200,200 | 78.2 | 72,567 | 30,254 |
34 | Bullhead City | 187,100 | 65.1 | 47,129 | 41,593 |
35 | Yuma | 186,500 | 64.3 | 59,312 | 96,314 |
36 | Apache Junction | 174,100 | 77.8 | 56,209 | 38,855 |
37 | San Luis | 171,700 | 64.4 | 46,747 | 35,189 |
38 | Fortuna Foothills | 156,000 | 82.7 | 55,347 | 27,552 |
Credit card companies are at war, handing out free rewards and benefits to win the best customers. A good cash back card can be worth thousands of dollars a year in free money, not to mention other perks like travel, insurance, and access to fancy lounges. See our top picks for the best credit cards today. You won’t want to miss some of these offers.
Flywheel Publishing has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Flywheel Publishing and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.