The median existing home sold for $20,100 in 1968 and $408,000 in 2024 — a 20× increase in current dollars over 56 years. New construction commands a ~12% premium, reflecting size and feature creep.
Prices shown are median sale prices in current dollars — not inflation-adjusted. New-construction medians come from the Census Survey of Construction; existing-home medians come from the NAR Existing Home Sales report. Both series capture only closed transactions, not list prices or appraisals.
Existing-home prices peaked at $219,000 in 2005, fell to $166,200 by 2011 (-24%), then recovered to $357,100 by 2021 in the pandemic surge. Median prices have risen every year since 2012, even through the 2022–2024 sales freeze.
units, K or Mmedian, current $30-yr fixed, % APRCensusNARFreddie MacNBER monthly