Cheapest Cities to Buy a House in Kansas (2026)
The 5 cheapest Kansas cities by median closed price, from $185,000 in Topeka to $324,975 in Lawrence, with what houses cost per square foot, what resales did, and how fast listings go.
These are the Kansas cities with the lowest median closed home price over their reporting window, among cities where Resideline tracked at least 100 closings inside the municipal limits. Cheapest is not the same as best value, so each city also shows what houses closed at per square foot, what history says about appreciation, and how fast listed homes went under contract.
The ranking
| # | City | Median closed price | Houses $/sqft | Realized appreciation | Days to contract | Closings | Window |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Topeka | $185,000 | $125 | n/a | 6 | 811 | six months |
| 2 | Kansas City | $239,000 | $162 | n/a | 10 | 780 | six months |
| 3 | Garden City | $239,500 | $200 | n/a | 47 | 237 | 12 months |
| 4 | Leavenworth | $249,000 | $146 | n/a | 17 | 215 | six months |
| 5 | Lawrence | $324,975 | $194 | n/a | 7 | 290 | six months |
1. Topeka, $185,000
The median closed price in Topeka is $185,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 51 percent of the state figure. 811 closings sit behind that figure, about 135 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $125, measured on 740 sales. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 6 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 11.3 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Topeka market page.
2. Kansas City, $239,000
Homes in Kansas City closed at a median of $239,000 over the last six months, about 66 percent of the Kansas statewide median. Resideline tracked 780 closings there, roughly 130 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $162, measured on 736 sales. The median listed home was under contract in 10 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. About 8.8 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Kansas City market page.
3. Garden City, $239,500
The median closed price in Garden City is $239,500 across the last 12 months, which puts it at roughly 67 percent of the state figure. Resideline tracked 237 closings there, roughly 20 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $200 per square foot across 222 sales with usable living area. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 47 days. Full detail is on the Garden City market page.
4. Leavenworth, $249,000
Leavenworth's median closed price over the last six months was $249,000, around 69 percent of what the typical Kansas sale closed at. 215 closings sit behind that figure, about 36 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $146, measured on 204 sales. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 17 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 7.7 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Leavenworth market page.
5. Lawrence, $324,975
Homes in Lawrence closed at a median of $324,975 over the last six months, about 90 percent of the Kansas statewide median. 290 closings sit behind that figure, about 48 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $194, measured on 227 sales. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 7 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 8.0 percent of listings that sold were marketed as-is or distressed, which is high and part of why the entry price is low. Full detail is on the Lawrence market page.
Note: realized appreciation is the one column measured on the postal city, from repeat sales of the same home across the ZIP codes that share the city's name; every other figure is confined to the municipal boundary.
How to read this list
A low median is where the analysis starts, not where it ends. Property type, size, condition and block move a number far more than the city line does, so check any address on this list against its own comparable closings.
Figures last updated October 3, 2026 from closings Resideline tracked. Appreciation is the median annual change between consecutive sales of the same home; it is historical, nominal and not a projection.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cheapest city to buy a house in Kansas?
Topeka, with a median closed price of $185,000 over its reporting window, among Kansas cities where Resideline tracked at least 100 closings inside the city limits.
Are these asking prices or sale prices?
Closed sale prices. Every price median is the price homes actually closed at inside the municipal boundary, not a listing price. The one column measured differently is realized appreciation, which uses the postal city, as the note under the table says.
Why does a cheap city show a high price per square foot?
Because the ranking median covers every property type that closed, condos and multi-family included, while the $/sqft column is single-family houses only. In cities where most sales are condos, the median price is low and the house $/sqft can still be high.
Is the appreciation figure a forecast?
No. It is the median annual change between consecutive sales of the same home, on repeat-sale pairs. It is historical and nominal, and it says what happened, not what will.
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