Small towns with the lowest home prices
Cheap houses alone aren't the goal: the book warns against dying towns. So every town here still has the basics, and they're ranked by typical home value.
How we picked
- 2,500 to 75,000 people, and not a suburb of a bigger city
- An emergency room within 30 miles (straight line)
- Population not down more than 5% since 2020 (the book warns against dying towns)
- Incorporated towns only (survey home values in some unincorporated areas, such as tribal trust land, don't reflect what a newcomer could buy)
- Ranked by typical home value, as owners valued them in the Census survey (2020-2024)
| # | Town | Typical home | Household income | Emergency room | Big city |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johnstown, PA | $45,400 | $37,888 | In town | 56 mi to Pittsburgh |
| 2 | Shenandoah, PA | $49,500 | $45,294 | 9 mi | 79 mi to Philadelphia |
| 3 | Raymondville, TX | $52,200 | $51,442 | 20 mi | 211 mi to San Antonio |
| 4 | Mahanoy City, PA | $52,400 | $37,727 | 9 mi | 77 mi to Philadelphia |
| 5 | Charleroi, PA | $52,800 | $43,265 | 3 mi | 21 mi to Pittsburgh |
| 6 | Lansford, PA | $55,800 | $44,713 | 9 mi | 69 mi to Philadelphia |
| 7 | Ashland, PA | $58,800 | $52,708 | 11 mi | 83 mi to Philadelphia |
| 8 | Heavener, OK | $59,200 | $34,408 | 11 mi | 112 mi to Tulsa |
| 9 | Saginaw, MI | $60,000 | $38,579 | In town | 83 mi to Detroit |
| 10 | Providence, KY | $60,300 | $55,121 | 15 mi | 100 mi to Nashville |
| 11 | Shamokin, PA | $60,400 | $39,690 | 13 mi | 92 mi to Philadelphia |
| 12 | Unadilla, GA | $60,600 | $36,875 | 15 mi | 111 mi to Atlanta |
| 13 | Coffeyville, KS | $60,800 | $45,670 | In town | 64 mi to Tulsa |
| 14 | Donora, PA | $62,300 | $39,544 | 3 mi | 19 mi to Pittsburgh |
| 15 | Vivian, LA | $62,700 | In town | 161 mi to Dallas | |
| 16 | Youngstown, OH | $63,300 | $34,408 | In town | 57 mi to Pittsburgh |
| 17 | Wewoka, OK | $63,300 | $37,986 | 8 mi | 62 mi to Oklahoma City |
| 18 | Tucumcari, NM | $64,100 | $31,844 | In town | 324 mi to Denver |
| 19 | Stamford, TX | $64,700 | $46,940 | 11 mi | 165 mi to Dallas |
| 20 | Clifton, AZ | $66,000 | $78,480 | 30 mi | 110 mi to Tucson |
| 21 | Marlin, TX | $66,000 | $36,426 | In town | 86 mi to Austin |
| 22 | Eldorado, IL | $66,200 | $37,154 | In town | 113 mi to St. Louis |
| 23 | Bicknell, IN | $66,300 | $52,188 | 11 mi | 93 mi to Indianapolis |
| 24 | Christopher, IL | $66,600 | $48,247 | 8 mi | 79 mi to St. Louis |
| 25 | East Prairie, MO | $68,400 | $34,637 | 14 mi | 120 mi to Memphis |
| 26 | Colorado City, TX | $69,500 | $53,448 | In town | 234 mi to Austin |
| 27 | Tilton, IL | $70,400 | $55,697 | 3 mi | 82 mi to Indianapolis |
| 28 | Hobart, OK | $71,100 | $33,051 | In town | 94 mi to Oklahoma City |
| 29 | Lawrenceville, IL | $71,300 | $41,005 | In town | 110 mi to Indianapolis |
| 30 | Parsons, KS | $71,700 | $52,428 | In town | 90 mi to Tulsa |
| 31 | Georgetown, IL | $71,800 | $58,182 | 11 mi | 80 mi to Indianapolis |
| 32 | St. Clair, PA | $71,800 | $64,304 | 3 mi | 74 mi to Philadelphia |
| 33 | Bushnell, IL | $71,900 | $67,518 | 11 mi | 133 mi to St. Louis |
| 34 | Coleman, TX | $71,900 | $34,613 | In town | 145 mi to Austin |
| 35 | Louisiana, MO | $72,100 | $38,673 | In town | 71 mi to St. Louis |
| 36 | Baxley, GA | $72,300 | $29,880 | In town | 107 mi to Jacksonville |
| 37 | Savanna, IL | $72,400 | $48,036 | 16 mi | 127 mi to Chicago |
| 38 | Escobares, TX | $72,800 | $29,844 | 7 mi | 212 mi to San Antonio |
| 39 | Kewanee, IL | $73,200 | $50,886 | In town | 123 mi to Chicago |
| 40 | Kane, PA | $73,600 | $52,353 | In town | 85 mi to Buffalo |
| 41 | Oil City, PA | $74,100 | $51,316 | 5 mi | 70 mi to Pittsburgh |
| 42 | Grafton, WV | $74,600 | $40,402 | In town | 76 mi to Pittsburgh |
| 43 | Anson, TX | $74,800 | $48,104 | In town | 182 mi to Dallas |
| 44 | Paris, IL | $75,700 | $53,927 | In town | 83 mi to Indianapolis |
| 45 | Breckenridge, TX | $75,900 | $48,000 | In town | 125 mi to Dallas |
| 46 | Benton Harbor, MI | $76,500 | $31,117 | 2 mi | 66 mi to Chicago |
| 47 | Flora, IL | $77,300 | $47,148 | In town | 96 mi to St. Louis |
| 48 | New Castle, PA | $77,400 | $42,219 | In town | 43 mi to Pittsburgh |
| 49 | Rio Bravo, TX | $77,400 | $45,864 | 12 mi | 156 mi to San Antonio |
| 50 | Saluda, SC | $77,700 | $42,506 | 18 mi | 67 mi to Greenville |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau (2025 population estimates; American Community Survey 2020-2024), Medicare hospital data, NOAA climate normals, the National Park Service and the Education Department, as on each town page. Census survey figures are estimates; towns where the survey is too thin for a figure are left off lists that use it. Miles are straight-line. Data last updated October 5, 2026.
Every list is a starting point, not a verdict. Read the town's page, then visit before you move. Search every town your own way with Find a small town.