Home Appreciation During the Final Year of the Pandemic

The Mommies Reviews

South Atlantic states boast the greatest growth, while Western states lag behind

Data experts BestPlaces calculated home value changes across the United States from January to December 2022, as the nation finally left the Coronavirus pandemic in its rearview mirror. Based on self-reported Census data, these proprietary figures reflect current home values (not necessarily listing prices) and are adjusted using current listing and sales prices. 

  • All states showed an overall increase in median home value; the District of Columbia showed a slight decrease.
  • The overall national home value appreciation for 2022 was 8.3%.
  • In general, the Southeast U.S. showed the greatest appreciation, while the West Coast states showed the least.
RankStateMedian Home Value1-year Appreciation (Jan. 2022-Dec. 2022)
1Florida$362,40015.2%
2North Carolina$289,30013.3%
3South Carolina$259,90012.9%
4Hawaii$800,20012.8%
5Maine$334,00012.1%
6Montana$441,80011.9%
7Delaware$336,20011.9%
8Tennessee$277,40011.8%
9Georgia$308,20011.3%
10Arkansas$181,80010.7%
11New Mexico$267,10010.4%
12Alabama$214,00010.2%
13Kentucky$194,30010.2%
14South Dakota$268,00010.1%
15Wisconsin$244,1009.9%
16Oklahoma$174,6009.8%
17Virginia$343,2009.7%
18Texas$297,6009.6%
19Indiana$221,6009.5%
20Iowa$194,9009.5%
21Nebraska$228,1009.4%
22Connecticut$362,1009.3%
23New Hampshire$421,3009.1%
24West Virginia$139,7009.0%
25Missouri$212,3008.8%
26New York$413,6008.6%
27Ohio$197,0008.5%
28Vermont$344,6008.5%
29New Jersey$432,1008.1%
30Pennsylvania$242,8008.1%
31Mississippi$155,3007.7%
32Kansas$194,1007.4%
33Wyoming$324,5007.3%
34Illinois$241,7006.9%
35Maryland$388,1006.5%
36Michigan$218,7006.5%
37Arizona$407,4006.2%
38North Dakota$240,7006.2%
39Louisiana$184,8006.0%
40Rhode Island$401,2005.8%
41Alaska$336,1005.7%
42Colorado$527,2005.5%
43Massachusetts$557,3005.1%
44Minnesota$309,5004.9%
45Nevada$417,1004.2%
46Utah$510,6003.9%
47Washington$534,7003.5%
48Oregon$468,4003.4%
49Idaho$445,0002.9%
50California$733,5002.2%
51District of Columbia$638,400-1.0%
 United States (overall)$338,1008.3%

Top Five States

• Ranked first in one-year median home price appreciation was Florida, with a 15.2% increase. The metropolitan area in the Sunshine State with the highest home price appreciation for 2022 is the Lakeland-Winter Haven metro area with a rate of 23.9%.  In fact, Lakeland-Winter Haven’s appreciation rate was the highest in the entire country (out of 927 major and minor metropolitan areas). Furthermore, the top six spots for the greatest 2022 metropolitan area median home price appreciation belong to Florida.  The median home price in Florida was $362,400 at the end of 2022.

• North Carolina earned the second spot, with a median house value of $289,300 and a 13.3% appreciation.  The metropolitan areas in the Tarheel State with the highest median home price appreciations for 2022 are Lumberton and Wilson, both with a rate of 20.6%.

• South Carolina followed closely in third place, at $259,900 and 12.9% appreciation over the same time period. The metropolitan area in the Palmetto State with the highest median home price appreciation for 2022 is the Gaffney metro area with a rate of 19.2%.

• Hawaii claimed fourth place with a 12.8% appreciation during the same year-long period.  The median house value ($800,200) in the Aloha State is the highest in the country.  The metropolitan areas in Hawaii with the highest median home price appreciations for 2022 are the Hilo and Kapaa metro areas, both with a rate of 18.3%.

• Maine rounded out the top five with a median house value of $334,000 and 12.1% appreciation over the same timeframe. Augusta-Waterville had the Pine Tree State’s highest home appreciation rate at 16.5%.

Bottom Five States

The bottom five states were filled out by those in the West, and the only area to show a negative home price appreciation was the District of Columbia.

• In Washington state, the median home price finished 2022 at $534,700 and the appreciation rate was the fifth-lowest in the country at a sluggish 3.5%. However, there were bright growth spots in metro areas like Othello, which boasted a 15.2% median price appreciation rate.

It is interesting to note that the Washington metro area with the least amount of appreciation was the Seattle area at 6.2%, which is still greater than the overall state figure of 3.5%. How can this be? It’s because the rural areas showed such low (and perhaps even negative) appreciation that their rates brought the overall state rate down to that 3.5% figure.  You’ll notice this counterintuitive data phenomenon in Oregon and Idaho also.

• Oregon had a median home price of $468,400 and the fourth-lowest appreciation rate of 3.4%. La Grande and Roseburg, however, led the state with 12.7% appreciation.  Hood River had the lowest appreciation rate at 3.8%.

• Idaho had a median home price of $445,000 and the state’s 2022 appreciation rate was 2.9%. The Mountain Home area led the state with an appreciation rate of 15.9%. The Hailey metropolitan area had the lowest appreciation rate at 5.3%.

• California’s sky-high median home price of $733,500 showed a glacial appreciation rate of 2.2% for the year. The Eureka-Arcata area was the most appreciative in the state with a rate of 14.8%. The Hanford-Corcoran area had the lowest rate of appreciation at 2.0%.

• In the District of Columbia, the median home price was $638,400 and its appreciation rate was negative at -1.0%.

“I think we’re going to see some softening of home prices, particularly in some of the largest markets. You’re already seeing it in some of the coastal markets where the values are very high,” says Bert Sperling, founder and CEO of BestPlaces.

About BestPlaces
For over 35 years, BestPlaces has focused on helping people find their own best place to live.  On the BestPlaces.net website, millions of monthly visitor’s research, compare and rank every city, town, and zip code in the United States. BestPlaces is the United States’ most reliable and thorough resource for demographic data, from the national level down to the zip code (and everything in between).

Thank you,

Glenda, Charlie and David Cates