6 Best Places To Live in 2026 If You’re Tired of Feeling Broke
6 Best Places To Live in 2026 If You’re Tired of Feeling Broke
Vance CariagaTue, March 3, 2026 at 6:37 PM UTC
0
ChrisBoswell / Getty Images/iStockphoto
Homebuyers in the United States who are shocked by record-high prices aren’t getting much relief so far in 2026. Prices continue to tick higher, albeit at a slow rate.
The average home value nationwide as of Jan. 31 was $357,445, according to Zillow. That’s up 0.2% from the previous year. An analysis from Redfin found that U.S. home prices rose 1.1% year over year in January, selling for a median of $422,980.
Be Aware: 22 States in or Near a Recession Right Now — and What It Means for Residents
Read More: How Middle-Class Earners Are Quietly Becoming Millionaires — and How You Can, Too
But for house hunters in search of bargains, there are several good choices. Here’s a look at six of the best places to live in 2026 if you’re feeling broke.
1. Fort Wayne, Indiana -
Average home price: $234,437
Cost-of-living score (vs. 100 national average): 82
Fort Wayne is one of the “most affordable midsized cities in America,” according to Ben Mizes, co-founder of Clever Offers and a licensed real estate agent.
“It has a diversified economy [and] is one of the few cities where the median house prices remain favorably placed with regard to the median income of the residents,” he told GOBankingRates.
Find Out: How Much You Need To Be in the Top 5% in Every State
2. Huntsville, Alabama -
Average home price: $280,326
Cost-of-living score: 94.2
Sain Rhodes, a real estate specialist at Clever Offers, told GOBankingRates that in addition to affordable homes, Huntsville offers “lower grocery, utility, and transportation costs than its coastal competitors.”
Advertisement
Overall, it offers many positives for prospective residents. “The region demonstrates that you can have both a strong career and a low mortgage,” Rhodes said.
3. Oklahoma City -
Average home price: $202,648
Cost-of-living score: 85.5
Oklahoma City offers affordability as well as a strong job market — especially in energy, aerospace, government and healthcare, said Ksenia Levina, founder and real estate expert at Vienna Property Investment, whose work includes researching U.S. real estate markets and helping international clients invest in U.S. properties.
That combination makes Oklahoma City a “stable market rather than a volatile one,” she told GOBankingRates.
4. Peoria, Illinois -
Average home price: $126,819
Cost-of-living score: 75.6
One of Peoria’s big advantages is that people can “buy move-in-ready houses at prices that are a small fraction of what they would pay at other large Midwest cities,” Mizes said.
5. San Antonio -
Average home price: $245,251
Cost-of-living score: 91.3
San Antonio offers “something unprecedented,” Rhodes said. “A primary-market price at a secondary-market value.”
This is made even better because of the state’s tax situation. “And because Texas has no income tax, that is money straight back into residents’ pockets every single year,” Rhodes said.
6. Toledo, Ohio -
Average home price: $124,491
Cost-of-living score: 77.4
According to Levina, Toledo is one of the “few markets where an entry-level buyer can actually own a home … But it is the combination of affordable homes with available jobs in healthcare, logistics and manufacturing that attracts homebuyers.”
Editor’s note: Average home prices are from Zillow as of Jan. 31, 2026. Cost-of-living scores are from BestPlaces.
More From GOBankingRates
6 Kirkland Clothing Items You Should Buy in February To Maximize Savings
Jerry Seinfeld's Social Security Check vs. the Average American's
9 Low-Effort Ways To Make Passive Income (You Can Start This Week)
6 Safe Accounts Proven to Grow Your Money Up to 13x Faster
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 6 Best Places To Live in 2026 If You’re Tired of Feeling Broke
Source: “AOL Money”
