Million-dollar homes are becoming more common, with the U.S. having 621 cities where a typical home is worth $1 million or more.
While high interest rates have caused commercial real estate prices to fall, it hasn’t had the same impact on the residential market. Housing inventory has increased, but it still remains below average historical levels. At the same time, while mortgage rates have fallen, U.S. home prices continue to climb, nearing record highs.
This graphic, via Visual Capitalist's Dorothy Neufeld, shows the number of cities in each U.S. state where a typical home costs $1 million or more, based on data from Zillow.
Below, we show the number of cities where a typical home (the average home in the 35th to 65th percentile) costs $1 million or more by state:
| Rank | State | Number of Million-Dollar Cities |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 218 |
| 2 | New York | 76 |
| 3 | New Jersey | 60 |
| 4 | Massachusetts | 44 |
| 5 | Florida | 30 |
| 6 | Washington | 23 |
| 7 | Colorado | 22 |
| 7 | Hawaii | 22 |
| 9 | Texas | 17 |
| 10 | Maryland | 11 |
| 11 | Utah | 9 |
| 11 | Virginia | 9 |
| 13 | Illinois | 8 |
| 14 | Minnesota | 7 |
| 15 | Connecticut | 6 |
| 15 | Missouri | 6 |
| 15 | South Carolina | 6 |
| 18 | North Carolina | 5 |
| 19 | Arizona | 4 |
| 19 | Idaho | 4 |
| 19 | Montana | 4 |
| 19 | Nevada | 4 |
| 19 | Wyoming | 4 |
| 24 | New Hampshire | 3 |
| 24 | Tennessee | 3 |
| 26 | Deleware | 2 |
| 26 | Michigan | 2 |
| 26 | Ohio | 2 |
| 26 | Pennsylvania | 2 |
| 26 | Rhode Island | 2 |
| 26 | Wisconsin | 2 |
| 32 | Georgia | 1 |
| 32 | Kansas | 1 |
| 32 | Maine | 1 |
| 32 | Oregon | 1 |
| Total: | 621 |
As of July 31, 2024
California has more million-dollar cities than the next four states combined, with Atherton standing as the most expensive city, where a typical home costs $7.5 million.
Today, a typical home in California costs more than twice as much as a typical U.S. home, with residents paying almost $6,000 on monthly payments for a newly-purchased mid-tier home. These costs include mortgage payments, homeowners insurance, and taxes. Since February 2023, the state has added 20 cities where a typical home costs $1 million or more.
Following next in line is New York, with 76 million-dollar cities. A separate report shows that the price of single family homes jumped by 10.9% annually since the first quarter of 2023, giving the state some of the fastest-rising house prices in America.
Ranking in third is New Jersey, which saw one of the greatest increases in million-dollar cities overall since February 2023.
As we can see, there are 15 states without any million-dollar cities, mainly in the Midwest and South. These states are known for having greater housing affordability, and a lower cost of living, but fewer job prospects amid weak labor market activity.
To learn more about this topic from a U.S. city perspective, check out this graphic on the salary needed to buy a home in 50 U.S. cities in 2024.