What is the cheapest city to buy a house in New York?

Elmira, with a median closed price of $109,000 over its reporting window, among New York 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 New York (2026)

These are the New York 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	Elmira	$109,000	$70	3.94%/yr	52	161	six months
2	Niagara Falls	$122,000	$112	5.94%/yr	14	276	six months
3	Binghamton	$155,000	$102	5.56%/yr	33	275	six months
4	Lockport	$180,000	$120	5.10%/yr	17	319	12 months
4	Syracuse	$180,000	$130	5.31%/yr	19	639	six months
4	Rochester	$180,000	$133	5.04%/yr	10	1,045	six months
7	Buffalo	$205,000	$134	6.75%/yr	17	1,158	six months
8	Tonawanda	$224,000	$171	7.17%/yr	12	236	12 months
9	Troy	$230,250	$156	6.07%/yr	10	262	six months
10	Schenectady	$244,000	$161	5.24%/yr	9	333	six months
11	Cheektowaga	$250,000	$201	n/a	9	324	six months
11	Greece	$250,000	$170	n/a	7	115	12 months
13	North Tonawanda	$253,500	$193	5.96%/yr	10	164	six months
14	Irondequoit	$278,000	$190	n/a	7	159	six months
15	West Seneca	$282,500	$204	n/a	8	150	six months

1. Elmira, $109,000

Elmira's median closed price over the last six months was $109,000, around 20 percent of what the typical New York sale closed at. Resideline tracked 161 closings there, roughly 27 a month. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $70, measured on 115 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 3.94 percent a year between those sales, on 1,271 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 52 days. About 15.2 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 Elmira market page.

2. Niagara Falls, $122,000

Homes in Niagara Falls closed at a median of $122,000 over the last six months, about 23 percent of the New York statewide median. 276 closings sit behind that figure, about 46 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $112, measured on 208 sales. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.94 percent a year between those sales, on 1,670 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 14 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. About 9.1 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 Niagara Falls market page.

3. Binghamton, $155,000

The median closed price in Binghamton is $155,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 29 percent of the state figure. Resideline tracked 275 closings there, roughly 46 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $102 per square foot across 176 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.56 percent a year (1,467 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home took 33 days to go under contract, across 147 listed closings. About 12.1 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 Binghamton market page.

4. Lockport, $180,000

Homes in Lockport closed at a median of $180,000 over the last 12 months, about 33 percent of the New York statewide median. 319 closings sit behind that figure, about 27 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $120 per square foot across 273 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.10 percent a year between those sales, on 1,051 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 17 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 7.5 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 Lockport market page.

4. Syracuse, $180,000

Homes in Syracuse closed at a median of $180,000 over the last six months, about 33 percent of the New York statewide median. 639 closings sit behind that figure, about 106 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $130 per square foot across 459 sales with usable living area. Homes that sold twice appreciated at a median of 5.31 percent a year between those sales, on 5,847 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. About 7.4 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 Syracuse market page.

4. Rochester, $180,000

Homes in Rochester closed at a median of $180,000 over the last six months, about 33 percent of the New York statewide median. 1,045 closings sit behind that figure, about 174 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $133, measured on 704 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.04 percent a year (11,877 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 10 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Rochester market page.

7. Buffalo, $205,000

Homes in Buffalo closed at a median of $205,000 over the last six months, about 38 percent of the New York statewide median. 1,158 closings sit behind that figure, about 193 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $134, measured on 629 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 6.75 percent a year (11,183 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 17 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Buffalo market page.

8. Tonawanda, $224,000

The median closed price in Tonawanda is $224,000 across the last 12 months, which puts it at roughly 41 percent of the state figure. Resideline tracked 236 closings there, roughly 20 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $171 per square foot across 201 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 7.17 percent a year (701 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. Full detail is on the Tonawanda market page.

9. Troy, $230,250

The median closed price in Troy is $230,250 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 43 percent of the state figure. 262 closings sit behind that figure, about 44 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $156, measured on 136 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 6.07 percent a year (1,368 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 10 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. About 10.0 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 Troy market page.

10. Schenectady, $244,000

The median closed price in Schenectady is $244,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 45 percent of the state figure. Resideline tracked 333 closings there, roughly 56 a month. Single-family houses closed at a median of $161 per square foot across 221 sales with usable living area. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.24 percent a year (3,782 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 9 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. About 7.8 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 Schenectady market page.

11. Cheektowaga, $250,000

The median closed price in Cheektowaga is $250,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 46 percent of the state figure. 324 closings sit behind that figure, about 54 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $201, measured on 281 sales. The median listed home was under contract in 9 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Cheektowaga market page.

11. Greece, $250,000

Homes in Greece closed at a median of $250,000 over the last 12 months, about 46 percent of the New York statewide median. Only 115 homes closed in the window, roughly 10 a month, so the median is directional and the resale market is shallow. Single-family houses closed at a median of $170 per square foot across 102 sales with usable living area. The median listed home was under contract in 7 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the Greece market page.

13. North Tonawanda, $253,500

Homes in North Tonawanda closed at a median of $253,500 over the last six months, about 47 percent of the New York statewide median. 164 closings sit behind that figure, about 27 a month, enough to price against. On a per-square-foot basis, houses there closed at a median of $193, measured on 143 sales. Between consecutive sales of the same home, prices moved a median 5.96 percent a year (899 pairs, postal-area scope), a historical figure rather than a projection. The median listed home was under contract in 10 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the North Tonawanda market page.

14. Irondequoit, $278,000

The median closed price in Irondequoit is $278,000 across the last six months, which puts it at roughly 51 percent of the state figure. 159 closings sit behind that figure, about 26 a month, enough to price against. Single-family houses closed at a median of $190 per square foot across 155 sales with usable living area. Listed homes went under contract in a median of 7 days, which is fast for the state and leaves little time to deliberate. Full detail is on the Irondequoit market page.

15. West Seneca, $282,500

West Seneca's median closed price over the last six months was $282,500, around 52 percent of what the typical New York 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 $204, measured on 117 sales. The median listed home was under contract in 8 days, so a buyer here needs financing lined up before the search, not after. Full detail is on the West Seneca 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.