While the typical value of a home in the United States is about $263,000, the number of “million-dollar cities” rose sharply in 2020, according to a recent report by Zillow. There are 45 more U.S. cities with a typical home value of at least $1 million than there were a year ago — the largest increase in at least a decade.
There are now 312 million-dollar cities, up 104 from five years ago. Nearly half of those 104 crossed that threshold in 2020, a reflection of the flaming hot market last year that saw home values appreciating near 7.5% annually in November as demographic trends and pandemic effects brought surging demand through most of 2020. This follows a year in which home prices appreciated at the lowest rate since 2013 and a net of two cities fell below the $1 million threshold.
A majority (70%) of the nation’s million-dollar cities are concentrated within nine coastal metro areas. Among those, 61 are in the San Francisco metro area, 51 are clustered around New York City and 39 are in the Los Angeles area. The metro areas of San Jose (20 cities), Boston (11), Miami-Fort Lauderdale (11), Seattle (9) and Washington, D.C., (8) also have multiple cities where the typical home value exceeds $1 million.
Atherton, Calif., near San Francisco, has the highest typical home value in the country at about $6.6 million. Hunts Point, Wash., near Seattle, is No. 2, with typical values around $6 million. Sagaponack, New York, and Jupiter Island, Fla. (Port St. Lucie metro area), follow with typical values over $5 million. There are six additional cities with typical home values over $4 million, 21 more with values over $3 million, and another 38 with values over $2 million.
