Median home sale prices in September ran from $217,002 in Detroit and $254,416 in Pittsburgh to $1,546,449 in San Jose and $1,695,107 in San Francisco, according to Redfin’s metro-level data published Oct. 12. The national median sale price was $393,895, up 1.3% from a year earlier and the smallest gain since February. Dana Anderson, a Redfin data journalist, wrote the report.
Where a house sits on that range matters less to its owner than which way the local market is heading, and in September the metros split. San Francisco prices rose 14.6% from a year earlier while neighboring San Jose slid 3.4%. Anyone planning to sell, borrow against equity or simply track what a home is worth has to start with their own metro.
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How wide is the gap between Detroit and San Francisco?
San Francisco’s $1,695,107 is $1,478,105 above Detroit’s $217,002, or about 7.8 times as much, in Redfin’s September table. Detroit prices rose 4.3% from a year earlier and Pittsburgh’s rose 1.8%. San Jose’s median of $1,546,449 was the second highest in the table, and Pittsburgh’s $254,416 was the second lowest.
Other Midwest metros climbed faster than the national figure. Redfin lists Cleveland up 7.9% to $264,393, St. Louis up 6.7% to $304,111 and Chicago up 5.9% to $381,125. Philadelphia, at $279,358, was up 0.1%. On the coasts, New York’s median was $808,144, up 3.6%, Oakland’s $907,915, up 0.6%, and Los Angeles’s $912,904, down 0.2%.
Buyer demand was uneven across both ends of the range. Redfin’s table shows pending sales down 10.7% from a year earlier in Detroit, 7.8% in San Francisco, 3.5% in San Jose and 2.1% in Pittsburgh. Seattle’s 24.4% drop was the largest in the table, and Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, at 1.6%, the smallest. Deals fell through on 2.8% of San Francisco contracts and 5.5% of San Jose’s, against 17.3% in Detroit.
Which metros saw prices slip?
Seattle’s median of $793,179 was down 4.4% from a year earlier, the steepest drop in the table. Denver fell 2.6% to $568,694, Orlando 1.9% to $400,934 and San Antonio 1.8% to $304,301. Atlanta, Charlotte and Phoenix each lost between 1.3% and 1.5%.
The national trade group’s count lands in the same neighborhood. The National Association of Realtors said in its Oct. 13 existing-home sales release that the September median existing-home price was $417,500, up 1.3% from $412,300. By region, the Northeast median was $523,600, up 4.7%, the Midwest $329,600, up 3.1%, the South $361,000, up 0.2% and the West $613,600, down 0.3%.
Are 7% mortgage rates stalling buyers?
Redfin says pending sales fell 4% from August on a seasonally adjusted basis, the largest monthly drop in more than three years, and sit at their lowest level since spring 2014 outside April 2020. They fell from a year earlier in all 50 of the most populous metros, the first time in three years. Redfin’s weekly average mortgage rate reached 7.28% at the end of September, the highest in three years.
“It’s not surprising that when rates climb above 7%, fewer people buy homes because fewer people can afford them,” said Chen Zhao, Redfin’s head of economic research. Freddie Mac’s weekly survey put the 30-year fixed rate at 7.24% on Oct. 29, from 7.32% the week before and 6.17% a year earlier.
NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said further increases in mortgage rates in recent weeks mean fewer buyers can qualify to purchase a home. NAR, citing Freddie Mac, said the 30-year rate averaged 6.86% across September, up from 6.67% in August and 6.35% a year earlier. NAR counted 1.60 million homes for sale, a 4.8-month supply, and Redfin said active listings reached their highest level since March 2020, with 14.5% of deals falling through.
What is your own house worth at 7% rates?
With mortgage rates above 7% and buyers pulling back, a home’s list price and its likely sale price can drift apart, and owners who borrow against equity or sell into a slow market carry that gap. A prices-by-metro table cannot show what one house would fetch or cost to carry.
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This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
Warren Cohen is a finance writer based in Phoenix, Arizona, covering personal finance topics including credit, banking, and beginner investing. He earned his degree in business administration from Arizona State University and began his career working in consumer finance, where he gained direct experience with lending and credit systems. He now writes for personal finance websites and fintech platforms, focusing on clear, practical content that helps readers make informed financial decisions.
