What does $500,000 actually get you if you're buying a home right now? I pulled one recent sale near that price point from each of the 50 states to find out. Here's what half a million bucks looks like from Alabama to Wyoming.

A quick note before we dive in: more populated cities ended up with condos instead of single family homes. Keep the high HOA fees in those areas in mind too. If you want to see how a purchase price like this actually breaks down into a monthly payment, run it through the payment and closing cost calculator.

Alabama: Chelsea (southeast of Birmingham)

Sold 7/10/2026 for $490,000. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 3.5 bath
  • 2,869 sqft
  • 0.58 acre lot

Alaska: Eagle River (northeast of Anchorage)

Sold 8/21/2026 for $499,000 (list price, AK doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 3 bath
  • 2,374 sqft
  • 0.46 acre lot

Arizona: Litchfield Park (west of Phoenix)

Sold 7/28/2026 for $499,995. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 2,405 sqft
  • 0.17 acre lot

Arkansas: Alexander (southwest of Little Rock)

Sold 7/1/2026 for $493,100. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 2,388 sqft
  • 0.30 acre lot

California: Yorba Linda (east of Los Angeles, northeast of Anaheim)

Sold 7/9/2026 for $495,000. Condo.

  • 2 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,060 sqft

Colorado: Firestone (north of Denver near Longmont)

Sold 7/10/2026 for $499,999. Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 3 bath
  • 3,412 sqft

Connecticut: Glastonbury (southeast of Hartford)

Sold 8/4/2026 for $499,900. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 2,300 sqft
  • 0.92 acre lot

Delaware: Hockessin (northwest of Wilmington)

Sold 7/23/2026 for $490,000. Townhome.

  • 4 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 3,775 sqft

Florida: Key Biscayne (southeast of Miami)

Sold 8/3/2026 for $480,000. Condo.

  • 1 bed
  • 1 bath
  • 676 sqft

Florida has a lot of homes under $500k, but this was tough to find anywhere close to Miami.

Georgia: Peachtree City (south of Atlanta)

Sold 8/26/2026 for $495,000. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 2,484 sqft
  • 0.63 acre lot

Hawaii: Kailua (northeast of Honolulu)

Sold 6/24/2026 for $495,000. Condo.

  • 2 bed
  • 1 bath
  • 520 sqft

Idaho: Meridian (west of Boise)

Sold 8/21/2026 for $500,000 (list price, ID doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 3 bath
  • 2,012 sqft

Illinois: Park Ridge (northwest of Chicago)

Sold 8/7/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 2 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,715 sqft

Indiana: Zionsville (northwest of Indianapolis)

Sold 6/5/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 3 bath
  • 1,902 sqft
  • 0.54 acre lot

Iowa: Johnston (northwest of Des Moines)

Sold 8/19/2026 for $494,999. Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 3.5 bath
  • 2,636 sqft
  • 0.25 acre lot

Kansas: Louisburg (south of Kansas City)

Sold 7/20/2026 for $495,000 (list price, KS doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 4 bath
  • 2,958 sqft

Kentucky: Prospect (northeast of Louisville)

Sold 8/3/2026 for $490,000. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 3,100 sqft

Louisiana: Mandeville (north of New Orleans)

Sold 8/27/2026, valued at $494,900 (LA publishes no sale prices, that's the Zestimate). Single family.

  • 2 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,800 sqft
  • 0.61 acre lot

Maine: Falmouth (north of Portland)

Sold 8/21/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,578 sqft
  • 4.25 acre lot

Maryland: Fallston (northeast of Baltimore)

Sold 5/29/2026 for $515,000. Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 3 bath
  • 3,120 sqft
  • 0.51 acre lot

Massachusetts: Needham (southwest of Boston)

Sold 5/1/2026 for $500,000. Condo.

  • 2 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 903 sqft

Michigan: Northville (northwest of Detroit)

Sold 8/7/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 2,673 sqft

Minnesota: Prior Lake (southwest of Minneapolis)

Sold 7/15/2026 for $497,000. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 3.5 bath
  • 3,312 sqft

Mississippi: Madison (north of Jackson)

Sold 6/30/2026 for $499,900 (list price, MS doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 3.5 bath
  • 3,624 sqft
  • 0.39 acre lot

Missouri: Weldon Spring (west of St. Louis)

Sold 6/29/2026 for $499,900 (list price, MO doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 2,371 sqft
  • 0.92 acre lot

Montana: Huntley (northeast of Billings)

Sold 5/29/2026, valued at $470,200 (MT publishes no sale prices, that's the Zestimate). Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 1,278 sqft
  • 0.52 acre lot

Nebraska: Bennington (northwest of Omaha)

Sold 7/15/2026 for $495,000. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 3.5 bath
  • 3,738 sqft

Nevada: Enterprise (southwest of Las Vegas)

Sold 8/5/2026 for $540,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 1,625 sqft
  • 0.08 acre lot

This one was hard to find within my rules, so I broke above the $500k mark. On the plus side, property taxes and homeowners insurance are cheap out there, and there's no state income tax.

New Hampshire: Windham (south of Manchester)

Sold 8/4/2026 for $500,000. Townhome.

  • 2 bed
  • 3.5 bath
  • 2,413 sqft

New Jersey: Chatham Township (west of Newark)

Sold 7/31/2026 for $495,000. Condo.

  • 2 bed
  • 1 bath
  • Heritage Greene complex

New Mexico: Rio Rancho (northwest of Albuquerque)

Sold 8/26/2026 for $499,900 (list price, NM doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,853 sqft
  • 0.17 acre lot

New York: Wantagh (east of Manhattan, on Long Island)

Sold 3/3/2026 for $495,000. Condo.

  • 1 bed
  • 1 bath
  • 796 sqft

I had to go back to March 2026 to find anything at this price. Pretty sure this isn't a 55+ community either.

North Carolina: Waxhaw (south of Charlotte)

Sold 8/19/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,883 sqft

Bit of a drive from Charlotte.

North Dakota: Horace (south of Fargo)

Sold 5/28/2026 for $495,000. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 2,150 sqft
  • 1.16 acre lot

Ohio: Dublin (northwest of Columbus)

Sold 8/21/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 3.5 bath
  • 2,583 sqft

Oklahoma: Yukon (west of Oklahoma City)

Sold 8/21/2026 for $475,000. Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 3.5 bath
  • 3,479 sqft
  • 0.25 acre lot

Oregon: Scappoose (northwest of Portland, by Sturgeon Lake)

Sold 8/14/2026 for $475,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,430 sqft
  • 0.19 acre lot

Bit of a drive from Portland to find anything like this.

Pennsylvania: Havertown (west of Philadelphia)

Sold 8/21/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 1 bath
  • 1,692 sqft
  • 0.14 acre lot

Rhode Island: Cumberland (north of Providence)

Sold 8/20/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 2 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,407 sqft
  • 0.28 acre lot

South Carolina: Moncks Corner (bit of a drive northwest of Charleston)

Sold 7/27/2026 for $500,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 2,110 sqft
  • 0.42 acre lot

South Dakota: Brandon (east of Sioux Falls)

Sold 7/27/2026 for $490,000. Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 3 bath
  • 2,850 sqft
  • 0.29 acre lot

Tennessee: Nolensville (southeast of Nashville)

Sold 7/14/2026 for $495,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 1,632 sqft

Texas: Iowa Colony (south of Houston)

Sold 6/3/2026 for $499,000 (list price, TX doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 4.5 bath
  • 3,542 sqft
  • 0.16 acre lot

Utah: Riverton (south of Salt Lake City)

Sold 5/28/2026 for $499,900 (list price, UT doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 5 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 2,073 sqft
  • 0.23 acre lot

Vermont: Williston (east of Burlington)

Sold 8/18/2026 for $509,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 1,814 sqft

Virginia: Poquoson (north of Virginia Beach)

Sold 7/24/2026 for $515,000. Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 2,731 sqft
  • 0.39 acre lot

Washington: Sammamish (east of Seattle)

Sold 8/20/2026 for $516,000. Condo.

  • 2 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 1,138 sqft

West Virginia: Teays Valley (west of Charleston)

Sold 7/2/2026 for $499,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2 bath
  • 2,150 sqft
  • 0.23 acre lot

Wisconsin: Cedarburg (north of Milwaukee)

Sold 8/14/2026 for $499,000. Single family.

  • 3 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 2,118 sqft
  • 0.28 acre lot

Wyoming: Ranchettes (north of Cheyenne)

Sold 4/29/2026 for $498,900 (list price, WY doesn't disclose sold prices). Single family.

  • 4 bed
  • 2.5 bath
  • 2,308 sqft
  • 2.03 acres

How I picked these

Here are the rules I used. I know it's not perfect.

  • I chose one of the larger cities in each state.
  • I tried to keep the overall crime grade for the area at a B or higher.
  • I tried to keep the commute around 30 minutes from the city.

Crime pockets and safe pockets are everywhere, so it's hard to get exactly right from a computer chair. Safe pockets really close to a metro ended up having some of the most expensive properties. Some of the more expensive cities, like Los Angeles, needed a much farther commute to hit this price point.

State to state, property taxes and homeowners insurance are not created equal either. That's a huge part of what your real monthly payment ends up looking like, way beyond just the sale price.

What this means for your own home search

Kind of fun to see the differences in state and city prices for the same $500k budget. If you're trying to figure out what you can actually afford in your own area (not just what $500k buys somewhere else), run your numbers through the affordability calculator to get a realistic number based on your income and debts.

-Sam

Originally shared by u/SamTMortgageBroker in r/NewbHomebuyer — view the original thread.