These are the top 10 U.S. cities with the biggest homes
FILE-Downtown Colorado Springs endlessly sprawls at the feet of the Pikes Peak in the Rockies. (Doug Jones/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)
The demand for larger homes is rising since the pandemic as homebuyers are relocating to suburban and rural locales, according to a recent housing size report.
With home sizes and prices varying in each city and state, American Home Shield (AHS) created its 2022 housing index takes a deep dive into cities with the largest homes nationwide.
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To collect their data for the index, the Memphis-based home warranty company reviewed 506,374 listings of houses and condos for sale from Zillow to collect the results for its home size index.
According to the AHS index, fast-growing tech hubs in the Rocky Mountains have the largest homes and high-density coastal cities have more expensive homes, which is a factor in homebuyers seeking cheaper homes in other areas.
The AHS index also cited several factors that can determine the size of a home in a city or state, including the home's age and the age of the housing stock (the number of homes in an area).
Here’s a list of the top 10 cities with the largest homes, with the average home size based on square feet.
Top-10 cities with the largest homes
- Colorado Springs, CO (Average home size: 2,760 sq. feet)
- Aurora, CO (Average home size: 2,451 sq. feet)
- Raleigh, NC (Average home size: 2,366 sq. feet)
- Henderson, NV (Average home size: 2,337 sq. feet)
- Fort Worth, TX (Average home size: 2,255 sq. feet)
- Nashville, TN (Average home size: 2,109 sq. feet)
- Austin, TX (Average home size: 2,081 sq. feet)
- Albuquerque, NM (Average home size: 2,078 sq. feet)
- Omaha, NE (Average home size: 2,056 sq. feet)
- Charlotte, NC (Average home size: 2,049 sq. feet)
Colorado Springs, CO, claimed the number-one spot thanks in part to its 5.3% job growth. The city is a fast-growing tech hub that has increased the demand for large new homes, according to the AHS index.
The neighboring city of Aurora, CO, ranked second on the list due to a 5.7% spike in jobs. As more new workers flock to the area, the demand for new homes has grown, raising the average home size, the index states.
Median home prices jump
Higher home prices and mortgage rates have pushed mortgage payments on a typical home from $897 to $1,643 a month, an 83% increase over the past three years, according to an analysis by real estate information company Zillow.
The national median home price jumped 7.7% in August from a year earlier to $389,500. As the housing market has cooled, home prices have been rising at a more moderate pace after surging annually by around 20% earlier this year. Before the pandemic, the median home price was rising about 5% a year.
In the four weeks ended Sept. 11, home listings fell 19% from a year earlier, the largest drop since May 2020, the real estate brokerage Redfin found.
Many potential homebuyers are opting out of the market as the higher rates add hundreds of dollars to monthly mortgage payments. On the other end, many homeowners are reluctant to sell as they are likely locked into a much lower rate than they'd get on their next mortgage.
The Associated Press contributed to this story. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.