Real Estate

146 Cities Pass Million Dollar Home Mark

A record 146 U.S. cities became new “million-dollar cities” in 2021, according to real estate website Zillow. There are now 481 cities in which the typical home value is at least $1 million. Nearly half are in California. If current rates of appreciation hold, 49 more could join the $1 million club by midyear.

The number of cities that crossed the $1 million threshold in 2021 is almost triple that of cities reaching those heights in 2020, underscoring a record-setting year of home appreciation that saw the typical U.S. home gain 19.6% in value.

The majority of million-dollar cities are clustered within a few large coastal regions; the San Francisco and New York metro areas lead the way with 76 million-dollar cities each. The Los Angeles metro is third with 57 cities, and San Jose is fourth with 22. In total, 60% of all million-dollar cities lie within eight metro areas, and almost half (44%) are in California.

“The surge in demand for housing last year sent home values skyrocketing, even in places where prices already were sky-high, and that helped tip a record number of cities into the million-dollar club,” said Jeff Tucker, Zillow senior economist. “The locations of these newly seven-figure towns bust the myth that everyone fled California and the Northeast last year, as CaliforniaMassachusetts and New York led the pack for the most new cities with home values above $1 million. Still, we’re seeing how the geography of wealth in the U.S. has begun to shift, as 2021 was the first year for both Idaho and Montana to place any cities on this list, and now those Western states boast three million-dollar cities each.”

Indian Creek, FL, an exclusive 300-acre island in Biscayne Bay in Miami, is the most expensive city in the country, with a typical home value of around $28.3 million. The city has a total population of fewer than 100 residents, including a handful of high-profile celebrities such as Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen. In the No. 2 spot is Atherton, a small town on the San Francisco Peninsula where the typical home value sits around $7.7 millionHunts Point, WashingtonJupiter Island, Florida; and Sagaponack, New York fill out the top five, with typical home values of roughly $6 million each.

“With such sharp increases in home prices over the last year, we’re seeing tons of demand come from current homeowners who’ve decided to tap into their home equity to move up into their dream home,” said Erik Throm, an agent with Fast Real Estate in San Francisco. “But even expensive homes are moving quickly in this market, and shoppers should be prepared with a pre-qualification letter and the help of a trusted local agent who knows the pros and cons of their specific neighborhood and how to structure a winning bid that still protects a buyer in an incredibly competitive and high-priced market. ”

Metros with the Most $1 Million Cities (December 2021)

Metro

Number of $1 Million Cities

New York, New York

76

San Francisco, California

76

Los Angeles, California

57

San Jose, California

22

Boston, Massachusetts

18

Seattle, Washington

16

Miami, Florida

14

Washington, D.C.

11

Santa Maria–Santa Barbara, California

9

Santa Rosa, California

9

Growth of $1 Million Cities

Year

Total Number of $1 Million
Cities

Number of Net New $1 Million
Cities

2021

481

145

2020

336

51

2019

285

-7

2018

292

20

2017

272

38

2016

234

17

2015

217

16

2014

201

22

2013

179

40

2012

139

13

2011

126

-16

Top 10 Most Expensive Cities

2021

2021 Typical Home
Value

2011

2011 Typical Home
Value

1.    Indian Creek, Florida

$28,326,518

Indian Creek, Florida

$15,558,572

2.    Atherton, California

$7,698,328

Atheron, California

$3,827,781

3.    Hunts Point, Washington

$7,013,823

Jupiter Island, Florida

$3,101,817

4.    Jupiter Island, Florida

$6,852,623

Sagaponack, New York

$3,073,341

5.    Sagaponack, New York

$5,957,385

Belvedere, California

$2,824,324

6.    Hillsborough, California

$5,369,777

Hunts Point, Washington

$2,567,069

7.    Los Altos Hills, California

$5,250,550

Hillsborough, California

$2,552,220

8.    Golden Beach, Florida

$5,178,527

Los Altos Hills, California

$2,497,842

9.    Belleair Shore, Florida

$4,966,651

Montecito, California

$2,424,874

10.  Belvedere, California

$4,689,895

Golden Beach, Florida

$2,364,450