Two Minnesota Towns Are Named Among Most Expensive In US

For the most part, the Midwest is more affordable than a lot of the United States. Both the West and East Coast have the most expensive median home values in the US, but Minnesota surprisingly had two small towns make the list.

No States Are Affordable For Local Home Buyers

Stateline published a story showing the states that are most affordable to live in, and concluded that no states are affordable for buying a home in 2024. Gee, that's depressing.

Even Minnesota and Wisconsin had an affordability score of less than 1.0. According to the index, a 1.0 means that a single family of any income can afford some type of home. Under that, it means it's not affordable, and Minnesota ended up with a score of .73 and Wisconsin had a score of .65.

Median Value Of Homes Including Larger Cities

The median single-family home value in Minnesota is a whopping $377,600. That's crazy! Wisconsin's single-family median home value was $339,000.

Expensive Towns To Live In Minnesota

It's difficult to look at statewide averages of home prices because there are so many rural areas with cheaper homes. Larger metro areas like Minneapolis and St. Paul have higher home values, but also have higher incomes.

Looking at towns ranging from a population of 10,000-50,000 residents, Minnesota does have two places that make the list.

Alexandria, Minnesota

Alexandria, Minnesota, was number 28 on Lending Tree's list of the most expensive median home values in towns. Alexandria has a population of 39,081 people, and the average home price is $277,800. The median income value is $72,472. That gives them a home-to-income ratio of 3.83.

Red Wing, Minnesota

Red Wing is number 35 on the list with a population of 47,697 and a median home value of $254,500. The value-to-income ratio is 3.25.