Cedar Rapids, here we come.
Actually my upstate NY city has comparable houses for comparable prices (though higher taxes).
Hooray for the NYT! I've been hoping you'd show some gorgeous homes the rest of us could live in with normal household incomes. It may be hard for died in the wool New Yorkers to believe that its possible to live in 2000+ sq ft with land, a view, 20 minutes to art, culture, restaurants, work and the airport -- for under $300k--Without leaving New York State! Thanks for showing some great examples.
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The view off the 'sleeping porch' at the Ohio house says it all for me. I wouldn't live in Ohio, Iowa or Arkansas if you gave me these homes AND $250K . Nope.
and what sort of house can you buy in LA for 250K?
The Midwest and our wonderful *rustbelt* cities support quality lifestyles, innovative individuals, and tremendous dining, shopping, artistic and recreational opportunities...meanwhile, my IRA gets nice and fat.
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I love that you are covering homes normal people can afford. I love the vintage homes.
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Look at all the comments you are getting. Lots of interest. To all you looking for affordable housing, here it is , it exists ! Thank you so much NYT, please do more pieces like this!
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quick correction: ohio city is a lively historic neighborhood just west of cleveland’s downtown.....not a suburb of the city.
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Good to see affordable houses in flyover country featured. That said ...
With its generic Home Depot finishes, which will look dated and tatty within a decade, the Cleveland house looks like the work of a flipper.
Next time, look for a more interesting affordable home to feature.
I know nothing about the real estate market down there, but I’ve got a feeling the Little Rock house is overpriced.
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Agree. Only one looks like a house that may have been lived in, and the first flip is not well done. We see this in Baltimore a lot, key give aways are gray wall paint and the dining room combined with the kitchen. I see this being done even in old house with good sized kitchens.
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I agree with other commenters about the Cleveland house, although I think that a different choice of paints would help a lot.
The average home price in Ohio is $150K. $250K gives you a lot of options: a penthouse in downtown Cincinnati, a restored Italianate in the historic district of Old Washington, an interesting contemporary outside Dayton, and, of course, a gazillion cookie-cutter suburban and exurban options.
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I like the Cedar Rapids house.
A similar house in a nice suburb of Nassau County, Long Island, like Port Washington or Rockville Centre, would be three times the price and have 6 times the property tax.
This would be very tempting if your career is fairly mobile and you could make a decent living in Iowa.
I don't think the average person I encounter in Nassau County is any more enlightened than most Iowans nor is the weather much better here on Long Island.
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Cleveland left me cold what with the next-door house far too close and shabby looking.
Cedar Rapids, on the other hand, is quite attractive and has lovely wood work.
Little Rock is also attractive although I have never considered living in Arkansas.
Wide open living areas may be the current rage, but I am starting to get tired of them. Just saying.
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It is very nice to see affordable houses featured in this section. I am not a fan of the first renovation, but like the other two. Not sure if I would like the communities, as they are in red states.
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And looking at those prices from a Mississippi Delta, you really don't get much for what you pay. $221,000 for 1100 square feet in Little Rock seems outrageous to me, even if the 1100 square feet has been completely renovated.
The Cleveland home is sitting right next to one that has not been painted for years, so one can wonder about the neighbors and neighborhood; but it's still far from cheap
Just goes to show that home ownership, even for starter homes like these is quickly moving out of the future of the vast majority of Americans.
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Great points. Perspective is everything. The Little Rock home seems pricey while the Cleveland house is on a tight lot within a few feet of a neighboring dilapidated house that looks to be on its way toward condemnation.
The Iowa house seems to be the best deal, the most house for the money in the best neighborhood.
4
Having lived in suburbia, semi rural and now in the western Maine mountains where my neighbors are hundreds of yards distant on either side. I prefer this life in retirement, 3br, 2ba,3 car garage log home on 14 acres, yes it is cold, dress for it and 1 eatery within 15 mile radius. I would never live, what, 8 feet from my neighbor. Fair job on the re-habs however a bit overpriced
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There's a deeper message in these properties than their affordable prices and low taxes. Rehabilitating older homes in cities helps anchor neighborhoods, attracts younger buyers and very importantly, can reduce the overbuilding of new developments in "Houston" style and thus preserve greenbelts and reduce conflict with natural environments. This kind of infrastructure rebuilding - though with more basic refurbishing - should be part of the administration's investment.
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The one in Little Rock is gorgeous! I’ve met nice people from all three of these areas.
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AJ - So have I! And I like saying "Hi!" to people whom I haven't met yet and not get stared at by the other person.
Of all the reasons I'd like to live in NYC, there reasons like that one that would weigh against that idea.
There’s another world “out there” in fly-over country.
Other commentators decry the lack of good jobs in those locations, or the lack of culture.
In the 20 years I lived in one of those locations. I saw: Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Sara Brightman, and many other; my elderly parents saw Bob Hope perform live; ew saw the touring New York City Opera perform 4 times (and I took my kids – 20 minutes drive from my house, $5 parking – how many NYC area kids have seen 4 operas?); twice saw Handel’s Messiah performed live. And so much else.
My commute to work was 30 minutes, 3 stoplights. I had 1 and ½ acres, 2,000+ sq ft, apple trees, swimming pool, raspberries, 2 car garage, wonderful neighbors, and Iowa public schools (which are GREAT – check the test scores) and that house today would probably sell for around $250K.
From this fly-over city, as my job shifted, at times I traveled the world. My oldest son went on to graduate from the Harvard Business School. My daughter is an accountant in Florida. My youngest son graduated high school a year early, finished first year college calculus his junior year of high school, and now has a nice house about 2 miles from where he grew up, works as a mechanical engineer at a Fortune 500 company, and coaches girls high school soccer (he started coaching as a favor to a friend) and his team won the state championship the last two years.
My experience was in and near Davenport, Iowa.
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Well, we can't all be Harvard grads when we grow up. It's a much different story for most of us who have to live where we can and not where want to.
3
As a Clevelander, I have to correct one thing that the articles says: "the suburb of Ohio City." Ohio City is not a suburb. It's a neighborhood in inner city Cleveland. As someone who lives in Ohio City, I made a choice to return to the city--for its walkable and diverse neighborhoods. And my lovely house did not cost $250,000 thank you very much! And that's one of the things that Cleveland has to offer: a low cost of living along with world-class arts and culture, great hospitals and universities, and high-quality of life!
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I’ve seen beautiful homes for sale in Cleveland listed for half the price. Cleveland is just about the most affordable big city with a relatively strong economy. What’s cheap for Long Island can still be overpriced for Cleveland.
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Refurbished older homes are great to look at; what really gets my attention are the taxes. While not low enough for me to seriously consider moving from the NY metro area, they do help explain some of the flight to these middle America regions. People move where the jobs are. I'm curious about those prospects in the areas reviewed.
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All one needs is one job.
1
That Cleveland house renovation makes me sad, especially the dining room and first floor. Butchered.
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All three of them. It makes me so sad.
I thought it was a mis-print! $250,000 not 2.5 million!! For once you are showing homes that more people can afford. As much as I can appreciate homes that sell for a million or more, that is unattainable for most people.
41
Sweet but location, location, location. Not my chosen locations.
17
you get what you pay for..........there is a reason why these houses are soooooo cheap, they are in disgusting places that anyone with one money would never what to inhabit. Well, at least Cleveland has a great symphony, the Cleveland Clinic, a nice art museum and a Case Western, but the rest of these places have nothing to redeem themselves......horrible weather, horrible politics, you name it.
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How do you know?
4
How incredibly rude. None of these three cities are disgusting places and each features a variety of cultural assets and higher education institutions. You can say a place is not to your liking without doing so via insults and generalizations.
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As a native Iowan, we find the ignorant, baseless denigrations of our state annoying. But on the other hand, it's kinda nice to keep it a secret. Keeps the prices down, anyway!
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