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

Bemidji, with a median closed price of $224,500 over its reporting window, among Minnesota 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 Minnesota (2026)

Every Minnesota 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	Bemidji	$224,500	$122	5.12%/yr	27	208	12 months
2	Brainerd	$240,000	$145	7.04%/yr	25	209	12 months
3	Saint Cloud	$267,950	$136	5.48%/yr	23	458	six months
4	Owatonna	$274,950	$137	5.66%/yr	20	262	six months
5	Moorhead	$276,000	$146	4.31%/yr	26	387	six months
6	Mankato	$285,000	$133	4.73%/yr	20	224	six months
7	Duluth	$293,025	$201	5.76%/yr	12	732	six months
8	Alexandria	$299,000	$167	5.53%/yr	24	265	12 months
9	Brooklyn Center	$299,950	$173	n/a	17	194	six months
10	Saint Paul	$305,000	$184	4.17%/yr	18	1,845	six months
11	Monticello	$324,900	$175	4.68%/yr	22	241	12 months
12	Crystal	$326,500	$181	n/a	12	194	six months
13	Coon Rapids	$330,000	$185	n/a	14	419	six months
14	Anoka	$337,500	$181	4.28%/yr	20	217	12 months
15	Maplewood	$340,000	$189	n/a	16	226	six months

1. Bemidji, $224,500

Bemidji's median closed price over the last 12 months was $224,500, around 61 percent of what the typical Minnesota sale closed at. Resideline tracked 208 closings there, roughly 17 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $122, measured on 170 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.12 percent a year between those sales, on 694 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 27 days to go under contract, across 136 listed closings. Full detail is on the Bemidji market page.

2. Brainerd, $240,000

Brainerd's median closed price over the last 12 months was $240,000, around 65 percent of what the typical Minnesota sale closed at. Resideline tracked 209 closings there, roughly 17 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $145 per square foot across 193 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 7.04 percent a year between those sales, on 535 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 25 days. Full detail is on the Brainerd market page.

3. Saint Cloud, $267,950

Homes in Saint Cloud closed at a median of $267,950 over the last six months, about 72 percent of the Minnesota statewide median. Resideline tracked 458 closings there, roughly 76 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $136, measured on 412 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.48 percent a year (1,399 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 23 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Saint Cloud market page.

4. Owatonna, $274,950

Homes in Owatonna closed at a median of $274,950 over the last six months, about 74 percent of the Minnesota statewide median. Resideline tracked 262 closings there, roughly 44 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $137 per square foot across 242 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.66 percent a year (752 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 20 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Owatonna market page.

5. Moorhead, $276,000

Homes in Moorhead closed at a median of $276,000 over the last six months, about 75 percent of the Minnesota statewide median. Resideline tracked 387 closings there, roughly 64 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $146 per square foot across 319 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 4.31 percent a year between those sales, on 1,232 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 26 days. Full detail is on the Moorhead market page.

6. Mankato, $285,000

Mankato's median closed price over the last six months was $285,000, around 77 percent of what the typical Minnesota sale closed at. Resideline tracked 224 closings there, roughly 37 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $133, measured on 169 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 4.73 percent a year (1,027 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 20 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Mankato market page.

7. Duluth, $293,025

Homes in Duluth closed at a median of $293,025 over the last six months, about 79 percent of the Minnesota statewide median. 732 closings sit behind that figure, about 122 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $201, measured on 630 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.76 percent a year (2,721 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 12 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Duluth market page.

8. Alexandria, $299,000

Homes in Alexandria closed at a median of $299,000 over the last 12 months, about 81 percent of the Minnesota statewide median. 265 closings sit behind that figure, about 22 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $167, measured on 204 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.53 percent a year between those sales, on 779 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. Full detail is on the Alexandria market page.

9. Brooklyn Center, $299,950

The median closed price in Brooklyn Center is $299,950 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 81 percent of the state figure. Resideline tracked 194 closings there, roughly 32 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $173, measured on 171 sales. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 17 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Brooklyn Center market page.

10. Saint Paul, $305,000

Homes in Saint Paul closed at a median of $305,000 over the last six months, about 82 percent of the Minnesota statewide median. Resideline tracked 1,845 closings there, roughly 308 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $184 per square foot across 1,395 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 4.17 percent a year (20,218 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. Full detail is on the Saint Paul market page.

11. Monticello, $324,900

Monticello's median closed price over the last 12 months was $324,900, around 88 percent of what the typical Minnesota sale closed at. 241 closings sit behind that figure, about 20 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $175 per square foot across 175 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 4.68 percent a year between those sales, on 679 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 22 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Monticello market page.

12. Crystal, $326,500

The median closed price in Crystal is $326,500 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 88 percent of the state figure. Resideline tracked 194 closings there, roughly 32 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $181 per square foot across 180 sales with usable living area. The median listed home was under contract in 12 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Crystal market page.

13. Coon Rapids, $330,000

Homes in Coon Rapids closed at a median of $330,000 over the last six months, about 89 percent of the Minnesota statewide median. 419 closings sit behind that figure, about 70 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $185 per square foot across 287 sales with usable living area. 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 Coon Rapids market page.

14. Anoka, $337,500

The median closed price in Anoka is $337,500 across the last 12 months, which puts it at roughly 91 percent of the state figure. 217 closings sit behind that figure, about 18 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $181, measured on 178 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 4.28 percent a year between those sales, on 1,496 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 20 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Anoka market page.

15. Maplewood, $340,000

Maplewood's median closed price over the last six months was $340,000, around 92 percent of what the typical Minnesota sale closed at. 226 closings sit behind that figure, about 38 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $189, measured on 158 sales. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 16 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Maplewood 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

Treat it as a shortlist. A citywide median cannot price a specific address, and the cheapest city on paper can be the most expensive per square foot or the slowest to resell. Run any address here through Resideline for the comparable sales behind its value.

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.