Maine’s Average Home Prices have Risen the Fastest in the Nation

I'm pretty sure I couldn't afford my house now.

I don't live in some kind of palace. I live in an average 3-bedroom, 2 bath ranch. There's nothing extravagant about it. We don't have extra rooms, or fancy appliances. We do have three acres of land, but that's not remotely outrageous. And 5 years ago pre-pandemic, we paid a little over $200k for our house.

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Comparing it to similar houses online, I'd venture a guess that my house would currently go in the neighborhood of $400k. So in 5 short years, the value of my modest home has somehow doubled. And this isn't unique to where I live. All over Maine, homes are selling for insane prices. This is not new news to Mainers.

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What may come as news, is that our home prices have risen the fastest.

According to MaineBiz, the median home price in 2019 was just over $200k statewide. As of right now, the average price is almost $400k. That's an increase of almost 80%. This means that nationwide, our home prices have increased the fastest of anywhere else in the United States. No one else's homes are rising that fast.

Some states are close. Almost all the New England states are in the Top 10, with the exception being Massachusetts. Some studies have shown that Massachusetts home buyers are responsible for a lot of the craziness in our own real estate market. It would seem many, many people emigrated to Maine from Massachusetts. So blame them.

Why haven't some states felt the same kind of price increases?

Hard to say. But a lot of the people in the states with the least movement, don't seem like states where people want to move too far. The southern states appeared to still be the cheapest. The average price in Louisiana is super low. You can find many homes in the $250k range.

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That means it would require a much lower income to survive in those areas. Lower mortgage payments, less money down... It's all like a perfect combo to afford where you live. But if you wanna stay here in Maine, it's definitely going to put a dent in your wallet. Unless you bought your home five years ago. Might as well just stay put, right?