The amount of space a $300,000 budget buys you in the U.S. housing market can vary wildly depending on your location.
In Hawaii, $300,000 covers just 443 square feet, about the size of a 53-foot-long domestic shipping container. But in West Virginia, the same budget stretches to 2,185 square feet, offering four times as much space.
That's according to a recent GOBankingRates study, which analyzed median home price per square foot to show how far $300,000 goes in each state. The study used home price data from the Federal Reserve of St. Louis and housing cost indexes from the Missouri Economic and Research Information Center to calculate how much homebuyers can afford in each state as of January 2025.
A $300,000 budget buys less than 1,000 square feet of space in seven states, most of which are known for high housing costs, including New York and California. Nationwide, $300,000 typically buys a median of 1,511 square feet, which holds true in about half of all states, according to the data.
But unfortunately, $300,000 is less than what most people need to buy a home. The median U.S. home price is $419,200, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Even with a 20% down payment — about $83,840 — buyers would still need to finance approximately $335,000 to buy a typical home.
In expensive markets like Los Angeles, where median home prices can exceed $1 million, a $300,000 budget might not even cover the down payment. As a result, buyers in these high-cost areas are often forced into much smaller properties or to look to surrounding suburbs where prices might be more manageable.
The study also looked at what $400,000 and $500,000 can buy, with square footage comparisons for each state. Here's how far various homebuying budgets go in all 50 U.S. states, listed alphabetically.
Alabama
- $300,000: 1,876 square feet
- $400,000: 2,501 square feet
- $500,000: 3,126 square feet
- Price per square foot: $160
Alaska
- $300,000: 1,137 square feet
- $400,000: 1,516 square feet
- $500,000: 1,895 square feet
- Price per square foot: $264
Arizona
- $300,000: 985 square feet
- $400,000: 1,313 square feet
- $500,000: 1,641 square feet
- Price per square foot: $305
Arkansas
- $300,000: 1,781 square feet
- $400,000: 2,375 square feet
- $500,000: 2,968 square feet
- Price per square foot: $168
California
- $300,000: 641 square feet
- $400,000: 854 square feet
- $500,000: 1,068 square feet
- Price per square foot: $468
Colorado
- $300,000: 1,245 square feet
- $400,000: 1,660 square feet
- $500,000: 2,075 square feet
- Price per square foot: $241
Connecticut
- $300,000: 1,143 square feet
- $400,000: 1,524 square feet
- $500,000: 1,905 square feet
- Price per square foot: $263
Delaware
- $300,000: 1,388 square feet
- $400,000: 1,850 square feet
- $500,000: 2,313 square feet
- Price per square foot: $216
Florida
- $300,000: 1,244 square feet
- $400,000: 1,658 square feet
- $500,000: 2,073 square feet
- Price per square foot: $241
Georgia
- $300,000: 1,691 square feet
- $400,000: 2,254 square feet
- $500,000: 2,818 square feet
- Price per square foot: $177
Hawaii
- $300,000: 443 square feet
- $400,000: 590 square feet
- $500,000: 738 square feet
- Price per square foot: $678
Idaho
- $300,000: 1,351 square feet
- $400,000: 1,802 square feet
- $500,000: 2,252 square feet
- Price per square foot: $222
Illinois
- $300,000: 1,591 square feet
- $400,000: 2,121 square feet
- $500,000: 2,651 square feet
- Price per square foot: $189
Indiana
- $300,000: 1,733 square feet
- $400,000: 2,310 square feet
- $500,000: 2,888 square feet
- Price per square foot: $173
Iowa
- $300,000: 1,776 square feet
- $400,000: 2,368 square feet
- $500,000: 2,960 square feet
- Price per square foot: $169
Kansas
- $300,000: 1,894 square feet
- $400,000: 2,526 square feet
- $500,000: 3,157 square feet
- Price per square foot: $158
Kentucky
- $300,000: 1,721 square feet
- $400,000: 2,295 square feet
- $500,000: 2,869 square feet
- Price per square foot: $174
Louisiana
- $300,000: 1,587 square feet
- $400,000: 2,116 square feet
- $500,000: 2,645 square feet
- Price per square foot: $189
Maine
- $300,000: 986 square feet
- $400,000: 1,314 square feet
- $500,000: 1,643 square feet
- Price per square foot: $304
Maryland
- $300,000: 1,629 square feet
- $400,000: 2,172 square feet
- $500,000: 2,715 square feet
- Price per square foot: $184
Massachusetts
- $300,000: 593 square feet
- $400,000: 790 square feet
- $500,000: 988 square feet
- Price per square foot: $506
Michigan
- $300,000: 1,706 square feet
- $400,000: 2,275 square feet
- $500,000: 2,843 square feet
- Price per square foot: $176
Minnesota
- $300,000: 1,668 square feet
- $400,000: 2,224 square feet
- $500,000: 2,780 square feet
- Price per square foot: $180
Mississippi
- $300,000: 1,855 square feet
- $400,000: 2,473 square feet
- $500,000: 3,092 square feet
- Price per square foot: $162
Missouri
- $300,000: 1,704 square feet
- $400,000: 2,272 square feet
- $500,000: 2,840 square feet
- Price per square foot: $176
Montana
- $300,000: 1,583 square feet
- $400,000: 2,111 square feet
- $500,000: 2,638 square feet
- Price per square foot: $190
Ohio
- $300,000: 1,529 square feet
- $400,000: 2,038 square feet
- $500,000: 2,548 square feet
- Price per square foot: $196
Oklahoma
- $300,000: 1,793 square feet
- $400,000: 2,391 square feet
- $500,000: 2,988 square feet
- Price per square foot: $167
Oregon
- $300,000: 1,017 square feet
- $400,000: 1,356 square feet
- $500,000: 1,695 square feet
- Price per square foot: $295
Pennsylvania
- $300,000: 1,604 square feet
- $400,000: 2,139 square feet
- $500,000: 2,673 square feet
- Price per square foot: $187
Rhode Island
- $300,000: 1,171 square feet
- $400,000: 1,561 square feet
- $500,000: 1,951 square feet
- Price per square foot: $256
South Carolina
- $300,000: 1,550 square feet
- $400,000: 2,067 square feet
- $500,000: 2,584 square feet
- Price per square foot: $194
South Dakota
- $300,000: 1,493 square feet
- $400,000: 1,991 square feet
- $500,000: 2,488 square feet
- Price per square foot: $201
Tennessee
- $300,000: 1,617 square feet
- $400,000: 2,157 square feet
- $500,000: 2,696 square feet
- Price per square foot: $185
Texas
- $300,000: 1,647 square feet
- $400,000: 2,196 square feet
- $500,000: 2,746 square feet
- Price per square foot: $182
Utah
- $300,000: 1,033 square feet
- $400,000: 1,377 square feet
- $500,000: 1,721 square feet
- Price per square foot: $291
Vermont
- $300,000: 1,006 square feet
- $400,000: 1,342 square feet
- $500,000: 1,677 square feet
- Price per square foot: $298
Virginia
- $300,000: 1,290 square feet
- $400,000: 1,720 square feet
- $500,000: 2,150 square feet
- Price per square foot: $233
Washington
- $300,000: 1,057 square feet
- $400,000: 1,409 square feet
- $500,000: 1,762 square feet
- Price per square foot: $284
West Virginia
- $300,000: 2,185 square feet
- $400,000: 2,913 square feet
- $500,000: 3,641 square feet
- Price per square foot: $137
Wisconsin
- $300,000: 1,360 square feet
- $400,000: 1,813 square feet
- $500,000: 2,266 square feet
- Price per square foot: $221
Wyoming
- $300,000: 1,486 square feet
- $400,000: 1,982 square feet
- $500,000: 2,477 square feet
- Price per square foot: $202
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