Detroit is the most affordable major U.S. metro area for luxury homes, Redfin report finds
Detroit has the most affordable luxury housing market among the nation's largest metro areas, according to a new report from real estate brokerage Redfin, as the region's median high-end home price stayed well below $1 million even as luxury prices climbed nationwide.
The median sale price for a luxury home in the Detroit area was $719,252 in May, 47.7% below the national luxury median of $1,374,470, Redfin found. The analysis covered home-sale price-tier data for the three months ending May 31. Redfin defines luxury homes as those in the top 5% of prices in a given metro area over a rolling 12-month period.
"The Detroit area has a lot of beautiful, high-end homes that are affordable here, but would cost millions of dollars if they were in a major coastal metro area," Anne Loehr, a Redfin principal agent in the Detroit market, said in the report. "I don't know how long it will last, especially as we see more people moving here from the coasts."
Detroit was one of just five major metros nationwide — along with Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and San Antonio — where the typical luxury home still sells for under $1 million, down from eight metros a year ago. Cleveland's median luxury home was $833,228 and Pittsburgh's was $904,202, according to the report.
By contrast, three other metros — Indianapolis, St. Louis and Columbus, Ohio — crossed the $1 million threshold for luxury homes over the past year. Nationally, the median luxury home sale price rose 4.7% year over year to $1,374,470.
Redfin senior economist Yingqi Xu said wealthy buyers nationally are driving up luxury prices because they tend to be less constrained by mortgage rates than typical buyers.
"The fact that only five major metros still offer a typical luxury home for under $1 million shows just how much the high-end market has appreciated in recent years," Xu said. "For buyers looking to break into the luxury segment, those markets remain some of the few places where a seven-figure budget isn't yet the price of admission."
Detroit's affordability edge holds even as home values have risen broadly in the region. A 2024 CBS News analysis of Redfin data found Detroit was among the metros with the fewest $1 million homes overall, with less than 1% of properties reaching that price point — a sharp contrast to markets like San Francisco and San Jose, California, where roughly 80% of homes are worth $1 million or more.
Loehr said the affordability that has long defined Detroit's high-end market may not last indefinitely as more coastal buyers relocate to the region, adding pressure to local luxury home prices in the years ahead.