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Have Home Prices Beaten Inflation? Real Home Appreciation Since 1995
Inflation-adjusted home price growth for the U.S., every state, and every 3-digit ZIP region, using FHFA HPI® data and the Consumer Price Index.
Last updated 2026-09-30
Live data · FHFA HPI® through Q2 2026
Home prices vs inflation, by the numbers
Consumer prices (CPI-U) rose +121% from Q1 1995 to Q2 2026, while the U.S. home price index rose +292%, a real gain of +76.8%.
| Window | Inflation (CPI-U) | U.S. after inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 year | +3.9% | -0.8% |
| 3 years | +9.8% | +2.8% |
| 5 years | +24.0% | +13.9% |
| 10 years | +39.1% | +39.0% |
| Since Q1 1995 | +121% | +76.8% |
How many 3-digit ZIP regions beat inflation?
| Window | Inflation (CPI-U) | ZIP3 regions beating inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 year | +3.9% | 414 of 882 |
| 3 years | +9.8% | 721 of 882 |
| 5 years | +24.0% | 837 of 882 |
| 10 years | +39.1% | 869 of 882 |
| Since Q1 1995 | +121% | 878 of 879 |
Every state, after inflation
| # | State | Since 1995, before inflation | Since 1995, after inflation | 10 years, after inflation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | +464% | +155% | -4.6% |
| 2 | Florida | +401% | +126% | +58.2% |
| 3 | New Hampshire | +400% | +126% | +58.4% |
| 4 | Montana | +396% | +124% | +53.2% |
| 5 | California | +388% | +121% | +26.7% |
| 6 | Idaho | +387% | +120% | +81.5% |
| 7 | Washington | +387% | +120% | +47.3% |
| 8 | Maine | +378% | +116% | +60.2% |
| 9 | Massachusetts | +372% | +113% | +38.0% |
| 10 | Arizona | +372% | +113% | +55.4% |
| 11 | Utah | +370% | +112% | +58.9% |
| 12 | Colorado | +367% | +111% | +33.1% |
| 13 | Rhode Island | +356% | +106% | +58.2% |
| 14 | Oregon | +348% | +102% | +29.4% |
| 15 | New York | +333% | +95.8% | +41.4% |
| 16 | Wyoming | +323% | +91.1% | +26.7% |
| 17 | New Jersey | +320% | +89.8% | +43.2% |
| 18 | Vermont | +320% | +89.8% | +44.2% |
| 19 | Tennessee | +313% | +86.6% | +57.5% |
| 20 | Texas | +310% | +85.0% | +34.5% |
| 21 | Virginia | +304% | +82.4% | +31.9% |
| 22 | South Dakota | +302% | +81.8% | +36.7% |
| 23 | South Carolina | +297% | +79.4% | +54.0% |
| 24 | North Dakota | +293% | +77.5% | +10.0% |
| 25 | Nevada | +285% | +73.8% | +53.7% |
| 26 | Hawaii | +283% | +72.9% | +25.7% |
| 27 | North Carolina | +276% | +70.0% | +53.4% |
| 28 | Georgia | +275% | +69.5% | +52.6% |
| 29 | Minnesota | +275% | +69.5% | +26.7% |
| 30 | Wisconsin | +264% | +64.2% | +47.9% |
| 31 | Pennsylvania | +256% | +60.6% | +34.4% |
| 32 | Nebraska | +249% | +57.8% | +37.6% |
| 33 | Maryland | +248% | +57.2% | +17.8% |
| 34 | Kansas | +247% | +56.7% | +36.5% |
| 35 | Delaware | +245% | +55.6% | +30.6% |
| 36 | Missouri | +244% | +55.6% | +40.2% |
| 37 | Connecticut | +240% | +53.7% | +37.1% |
| 38 | Alaska | +239% | +53.3% | +13.6% |
| 39 | Kentucky | +239% | +53.0% | +37.5% |
| 40 | Oklahoma | +238% | +52.6% | +27.3% |
| 41 | Michigan | +228% | +48.1% | +46.3% |
| 42 | Indiana | +220% | +44.5% | +46.4% |
| 43 | Alabama | +219% | +43.9% | +35.7% |
| 44 | Arkansas | +218% | +43.6% | +33.7% |
| 45 | New Mexico | +218% | +43.6% | +34.9% |
| 46 | Iowa | +212% | +40.9% | +22.7% |
| 47 | Ohio | +201% | +36.0% | +45.7% |
| 48 | Louisiana | +200% | +35.6% | +2.1% |
| 49 | Mississippi | +194% | +33.0% | +22.3% |
| 50 | West Virginia | +193% | +32.5% | +21.2% |
| 51 | Illinois | +184% | +28.0% | +26.3% |
Biggest real gains since 1995
| 3-digit ZIP region | Since 1995, before inflation | After inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 916 · Los Angeles, CA area | +609% | +220% |
| 915 · Burbank, CA area | +569% | +202% |
| 331 · Miami, FL area | +567% | +201% |
| 914 · Los Angeles, CA area | +556% | +196% |
| 900 · Los Angeles, CA area | +546% | +192% |
| 911 · Pasadena, CA area | +542% | +190% |
| 921 · San Diego, CA area | +533% | +186% |
| 294 · Charleston, SC area | +523% | +181% |
| 927 · Santa Ana, CA area | +521% | +180% |
| 119 · Shirley, NY area | +519% | +180% |
Smallest real gains since 1995
| 3-digit ZIP region | Since 1995, before inflation | After inflation |
|---|---|---|
| 361 · Montgomery, AL area | +84.8% | -16.5% |
| 627 · Springfield, IL area | +126% | +2.1% |
| 392 · Jackson, MS area | +127% | +2.4% |
| 735 · Lawton, OK area | +140% | +8.4% |
| 485 · Flint, MI area | +143% | +9.9% |
| 253 · Charleston, WV area | +145% | +10.6% |
| 616 · Peoria, IL area | +145% | +10.8% |
| 626 · Jacksonville, IL area | +150% | +13.0% |
| 524 · Cedar Rapids, IA area | +151% | +13.4% |
| 625 · Decatur, IL area | +153% | +14.3% |
Nominal vs real appreciation
Nominal appreciation is the raw change in a home price index. Real appreciation removes general inflation, showing whether homes gained purchasing power or simply kept pace with rising prices for everything else.
This site measures inflation with the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), U.S. city average, all items, published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly CPI is the average of the monthly values, matching the quarterly FHFA HPI® series.
How the adjustment works
Real change equals the growth in the home price index divided by the growth in CPI over the same period, minus one. If a regional index doubles while consumer prices rise by half, the real gain is about one third, not the full doubling.
Over short windows the difference can flip the conclusion: a region can show positive nominal appreciation over a year in which inflation outpaced it, meaning homes there lost value in real terms.
Why it matters for homeowners
Real appreciation is a fairer way to compare housing with other long-term uses of money, and to judge whether a region's price growth reflects rising demand or mostly general inflation.
It does not capture everything. Owners also pay property taxes, insurance, maintenance, and interest, and they avoid rent. A home can be a sound purchase even when real appreciation is modest, and a poor one even when it is strong.
Limits of the comparison
CPI is a national measure of consumer prices, so it does not reflect differences in local living costs. FHFA HPI® tracks repeat sales and refinance appraisals of single-family homes with conforming mortgages, and it is a regional average rather than any one property. Both series are revised over time; this site re-imports them with each update.
Frequently asked questions
- Have home prices beaten inflation?
- Over the long run, generally yes. The data block on this page shows, for each time window, how the U.S. index and every 3-digit ZIP region compared with CPI-U inflation. Over shorter windows, some regions have fallen behind inflation.
- What inflation measure do you use?
- The Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), U.S. city average, all items, not seasonally adjusted, averaged by quarter.