Texas reportedly has one of the best housing markets for first-time homebuyers.
The Lone Star State claimed five of the top 10 best markets for such buyers, according to a recent analysis by financial services company SmartAsset.
The top three housing markets identified in the analysis include the Killeen, Wichita Falls, and McAllen metro areas.
SmartAsset determined that out of 185 markets nationwide, the three aforementioned Texas markets offered “the best combination of affordability, housing inventory, growth potential and relaxed competition across the study.”
Waco and Brownsville also made the top 10, coming in at No.6 and No.8, respectively.
The Killeen metro area made the No.1 spot. With a median home price of $252,833 at the end of May 2023, first-time homebuyers can walk away with a house at nearly half the national median of $416,100, according to July sales price data from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
Other factors that placed Killeen in the top spot included the average income of residents ($63,458) and the average number of houses on the market on any given month (nearly 3,000).
Wichita Falls ranked No.2 because it is generally more affordable than Killeen. The average income in Wichita Falls is $58,523, totaling more than 31% of the median home price of $186,650. However, the inventory of homes in the area is lower, with projected 12-month value growth coming in slightly lower than Killeen at 6.8%. It also has a smaller and younger population, according to the study.
McAllen made the No.3 spot due to its geographic location near the U.S.-Mexico border and its relaxed housing competition.
The city has just over 2,350 homes listed on average every month. Such homes spend an average of 40 days on the market before finding a buyer, according to the study. The median home price is $210,833, and the average income there is $47,597.
The top 10 cities for first-time homebuyers and each market’s median home price are listed below.
- Killeen, Texas: $252,833
- Wichita Falls, Texas: $186,650
- McAllen, Texas: $210,833
- St. Joseph, Missouri: $156,500
- Cape Coral, Florida: $350,292
- Waco, Texas: $262,817
- Huntsville, Alabama: $294,550
- Brownsville, Texas: $236,500
- Green Bay, Wisconsin: $270,167
- Jackson, Tennessee: $196,667
The full report can be read here.