What is the cheapest city to buy a house in Michigan?

Flint, with a median closed price of $48,500 over its reporting window, among Michigan 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.

Cheapest Cities to Buy a House in Michigan (2026)

Every Michigan city below cleared 100 closings in its window and is ranked by the median price homes actually closed at, not the asking price. The columns beside it are the questions that follow a low price: what you pay per square foot, what the same homes did on resale, and how quickly listings go.

The ranking

#	City	Median closed price	Houses $/sqft	Realized appreciation	Days to contract	Closings	Window
1	Flint	$48,500	$43	3.27%/yr	22	601	six months
2	Saginaw	$74,000	$61	4.84%/yr	18	280	six months
3	Detroit	$88,000	$67	3.72%/yr	32	3,360	six months
4	Bay City	$121,512	$93	5.61%/yr	13	288	six months
5	Pontiac	$134,807	$111	5.83%/yr	19	332	six months
6	Jackson	$135,000	$103	5.19%/yr	25	263	six months
7	Eastpointe	$147,000	$103	5.19%/yr	18	245	six months
8	Lansing	$150,000	$121	5.88%/yr	21	893	six months
9	Adrian	$155,000	$119	6.61%/yr	30	157	six months
10	Lincoln Park	$159,900	$116	5.45%/yr	12	263	six months
11	Roseville	$160,000	$121	5.62%/yr	17	426	six months
11	Owosso	$160,000	$117	6.67%/yr	8	150	six months
11	Port Huron	$160,000	$125	6.56%/yr	14	234	six months
14	Burton	$167,750	$121	4.44%/yr	19	246	six months
15	Niles	$170,000	$127	6.03%/yr	24	183	12 months

1. Flint, $48,500

Homes in Flint closed at a median of $48,500 over the last six months, about 17 percent of the Michigan statewide median. 601 closings sit behind that figure, about 100 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $43 per square foot across 577 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 3.27 percent a year (3,726 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 22 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 8.5 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 Flint market page.

2. Saginaw, $74,000

Homes in Saginaw closed at a median of $74,000 over the last six months, about 26 percent of the Michigan statewide median. 280 closings sit behind that figure, about 47 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $61 per square foot across 253 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 4.84 percent a year (2,715 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 18 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 6.2 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 Saginaw market page.

3. Detroit, $88,000

The median closed price in Detroit is $88,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 31 percent of the state figure. 3,360 closings sit behind that figure, about 560 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $67 per square foot across 2,824 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 3.72 percent a year between those sales, on 16,992 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 32 days. About 13.4 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 Detroit market page.

4. Bay City, $121,512

Bay City's median closed price over the last six months was $121,512, around 43 percent of what the typical Michigan sale closed at. Resideline tracked 288 closings there, roughly 48 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $93, measured on 258 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.61 percent a year (1,527 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 13 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Bay City market page.

5. Pontiac, $134,807

Homes in Pontiac closed at a median of $134,807 over the last six months, about 47 percent of the Michigan statewide median. 332 closings sit behind that figure, about 55 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $111, measured on 292 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.83 percent a year between those sales, on 2,182 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 19 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 8.7 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 Pontiac market page.

6. Jackson, $135,000

Homes in Jackson closed at a median of $135,000 over the last six months, about 47 percent of the Michigan statewide median. Resideline tracked 263 closings there, roughly 44 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $103, measured on 243 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.19 percent a year between those sales, on 2,647 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. The median listed home took 25 days to go under contract, across 123 listed closings. Full detail is on the Jackson market page.

7. Eastpointe, $147,000

Homes in Eastpointe closed at a median of $147,000 over the last six months, about 52 percent of the Michigan statewide median. Resideline tracked 245 closings there, roughly 41 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $103, measured on 237 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.19 percent a year (1,535 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 18 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. About 8.1 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 Eastpointe market page.

8. Lansing, $150,000

The median closed price in Lansing is $150,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 53 percent of the state figure. 893 closings sit behind that figure, about 149 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $121 per square foot across 795 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.88 percent a year between those sales, on 4,554 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 21 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Lansing market page.

9. Adrian, $155,000

Adrian's median closed price over the last six months was $155,000, around 54 percent of what the typical Michigan sale closed at. Resideline tracked 157 closings there, roughly 26 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $119 per square foot across 135 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 6.61 percent a year (754 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home took 30 days to go under contract, across 78 listed closings. Full detail is on the Adrian market page.

10. Lincoln Park, $159,900

Homes in Lincoln Park closed at a median of $159,900 over the last six months, about 56 percent of the Michigan statewide median. 263 closings sit behind that figure, about 44 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $116 per square foot across 253 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.45 percent a year (1,209 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 12 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 10.2 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 Lincoln Park market page.

11. Roseville, $160,000

Roseville's median closed price over the last six months was $160,000, around 56 percent of what the typical Michigan sale closed at. 426 closings sit behind that figure, about 71 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $121 per square foot across 343 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.62 percent a year between those sales, on 2,143 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. The median listed home was under contract in 17 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. About 6.3 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 Roseville market page.

11. Owosso, $160,000

Owosso's median closed price over the last six months was $160,000, around 56 percent of what the typical Michigan sale closed at. 150 closings sit behind that figure, about 25 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $117, measured on 128 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 6.67 percent a year (761 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 8 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 8.6 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 Owosso market page.

11. Port Huron, $160,000

Homes in Port Huron closed at a median of $160,000 over the last six months, about 56 percent of the Michigan statewide median. Resideline tracked 234 closings there, roughly 39 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $125 per square foot across 211 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 6.56 percent a year (1,502 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 14 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Port Huron market page.

14. Burton, $167,750

Burton's median closed price over the last six months was $167,750, around 59 percent of what the typical Michigan sale closed at. Resideline tracked 246 closings there, roughly 41 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $121 per square foot across 232 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 4.44 percent a year between those sales, on 2,931 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. The median listed home was under contract in 19 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Burton market page.

15. Niles, $170,000

Homes in Niles closed at a median of $170,000 over the last 12 months, about 60 percent of the Michigan statewide median. 183 closings sit behind that figure, about 15 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $127 per square foot across 172 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 6.03 percent a year between those sales, on 930 repeat-sale pairs across the postal area that shares the city's name; that is what happened, not what will. The median listed home was under contract in 24 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. About 9.0 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 Niles 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 September 5, 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.