The National Association of REALTORS (NAR) website, www.realtor.org, has information on county median home prices and monthly mortgage payments across the country. NAR applies the House Price Index growth from the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) to the latest housing data from the American Community Survey (ACS), to calculate a median home value for 3,119 counties and county equivalents in the United States. Home values represent the value of all homes instead of home sales.
Among the highest median home values in the last report representing 3rd quarter of 2022 across the country are San Mateo County, CA: $1,575,280; San Francisco County, CA: $1,458,510; and, Nantucket County, MA: $1,444,050. The two highest in the state of Maryland were Montgomery County at $626,584 and Howard County at $581,306.
While home prices and mortgage rates have a direct impact on the size of a mortgage payment, both of these two indicators are higher than the previous year. In the third quarter of 2022, mortgage rates are double those of a year ago, increasing by nearly 3 percentage points. Meanwhile, home prices have increased more than 30 percentage points in some counties. For example, the monthly payment is about $3,500 higher in Nantucket County. This causes many would-be homebuyers to be priced out of the market.
The website has a tool that shows you the monthly mortgage payment for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage as of now compared to a year earlier. For Worcester County, Maryland, the monthly mortgage payment now is $1,671, as compared to a year ago at $1,042—representing an increase of $629 year over year. For Wicomico County, Maryland, the monthly mortgage payment now is $1322, as compared to a year ago at $819—representing a $503 increase year over year.
Lauren Bunting is a Broker with Keller Williams Realty of Delmarva in Ocean City, Maryland.
