Median Home Value at Record High in 2019

The median value of the American home has finally surpassed the manic figure of 2007—just before the housing bubble burst. The nation's homeowners reported a median home value of $240,500 in 2019, according to the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS). This is a bit more than the $239,600 reported by homeowners in 2007, after adjusting for inflation. After 12 long years, perhaps this valuation now reflects reality—in contrast to the wishful thinking of 2007.

Not every survey agrees that median housing value is at a record high. According to the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances, homeowners reported a median home value of $225,000 in 2019, well below the $246,900 of 2007, after adjusting for inflation. According to the Census Bureau's American Housing Survey, homeowners reported a median value of $230,000 in 2019, still below the inflation-adjusted $236,100 of 2007. But the American Community Survey's sample size is much larger than either the American Housing Survey or the Survey of Consumer Finances, so the ACS is more likely to reflect reality. 

Median home value for selected years, 2007 to 2019 (in 2019 dollars)

2019: $240,500 (new record high)

2018: $229,700 

2015: $209,800

2013: $190,800 (post-Great Recession low)

2010: $210,900

2007: $239,600 (previous record high)

It is unknown how the coronavirus pandemic will affect home values. But the record-low mortgage interest rates of 2020 are spurring more home buying, which is likely to boost values even higher.

Source: Demo Memo analysis of the Census Bureau's American Community Survey