In my town, nothing. In Los Angeles (a couple towns over), you could get a studio or one bedroom condo, less than 800 sf. I’ve seen one that was in K-town, which is a fine place to live, for just above $250K.
According to realtor.com, the cheapest condo for sale in my town right now is $390,000 for 1 bedroom, 1 bath, and 747 sf. The cheapest house for sale in my town right now is $618,000 for 2 bedrooms, 1 bath and 986 sf.
This is why all of you Left and Right Coast people need to stampede on over to the Midwest. Sure, the food can be blander, but you could probably pay cash for a house here and have plenty left over.
I had my house built in central Pennsylvania. 4 bedroom, 2 car garage, 1/2 acre, full finished basement. $225,000. So I could buy a new car and a motorcycle to park in the garage too.
I’m reminded of (the book) Bonfire of the Vanities where the main character is lamenting about hemmoraging money. He thinks about the lovely home in Knoxville he could have for a fraction of what he’s paying on his Fifth Avenue (or is it Park?) two-story apartment in New York.
$250K will get you my house. Seriously. That’s about the going rate for my neighborhood, a settled suburb.
You’ll get a 3-bedroom, 1.5 bath ranch house with a one-car garage that was built almost 50 years ago. The house has probably been upgraded somehow (finished basement, addition, etc.) and will have about 1,600-2,000 square feet, with decent-sized front and backyards. Our street backs up to one school, is a one-block walk from another and a long, but quite doable, walk from the local high school.
In my town, Barrington, RI, it can buy you exactly nothing. Our town doesn’t have multifamily dwellings and the houses start in the 280’s (for very tiny fixer-uppers). My baby sister just closed last week on a house 1 town over for 199K. It’s not as nice a town, with not so great schools and the house is 850 square feet with no basement or attic and, honestly, not even a good wall to put a sofa against. It’s got two bedrooms and a bathroom so tiny you have to stand up to wipe.
[snobby LA voice]But, darling (and I do always mean it when I call you darling, darling), but, as I was saying, but, darling, if I moved to the “Midwest,” as you so quaintly call it, I’d have to live there.
I mean, really, darling. Don’t they have, like, mud there? And giant tractors? And drive-through Starbuckses? Well, truly, darling, that last one doesn’t sound so bad, but wouldn’t I have to get rid of my convertible since it rains or snows 367 days a year in this “Midwest”?
Darling, please. We must be practical. Now, I’m off to drive a block to the Starbucks for my venti carmel macchiato, if that silly girl behind the counter can get it right, and I’ll have to put it on my credit card since I seem somehow to have run through my allowance this month already and daddy won’t take my calls.[/snobby LA voice]
Believe me, Skip…if my company decides to make this telecommuting trial period a permanent thing, that may very well be exactly what happens. Live in CheapHousingVille, while still making East Coast pay? Sounds like a plan to me…
That’s what we did. Well, Mr. Athena did. I wasn’t able to get my job to let me telecommute permanently, but I’ve found one here. It doesn’t pay great, but it’s interesting and I can work at home a few days a week.
He makes east coast salary while we live in Podunk. I look cute and make him dinner. I highly recommend it.
You could get a decent 3 bed/1.5 bath townhouse around here for that kind of bread, or a small detached that would need some work.
Just 15-20 miles down the road in Burlington I can get a nice 3 bed/1.5 bath townhouse for $150,000, which is why I am moving there.
Skip, let me know if the house next door to you goes on the market. You two would be kick ass neighbors.
Here in RI, it’ll barely get you a 2 BR condo.
My area it’ll get you a 1 bdrm, 1 bath condo/townhome in an OK area.
10 years ago I bought my 1110 square foot condo (2 bdrm, 2 bath, with fireplace, loft & balcony) for $117,000. The present estimate is $410,000-425,000. Sheesh.
Where I live in Toronto, it will get you a decent condo, but not a house. All the houses in my neighbourhood are $300K and up to $750K or a million.
My aunt and uncle spent about $100,000 building their home, and that sucker is GIGANTIC. Huge kitchen, all-wood floors, back and front porch, seven bedrooms, two full bathrooms, living room, dining room, upstairs loft, overlooking a stream. But keep in mind that it was built in Mississippi, my uncle did a lot of the labor, and it’s built on property they already owned, land that’s been in my family for almost 200 years.
Adequate neighbors. We haven’t raked leaves yet this year. 
But we like throwing dinner parties; and hell, being next door to us you wouldn’t have to drive home.
I just inquired on realtor.com and found out that in my neighborhood, about the only thing you can get is a basement studio “condo” in the absolute UGLIEST building in town. Honestly, that building looks like if you’re living in a basement studio you don’t have any windows, and you might be living with your upstairs neighbor’s oil tank. Da pits!
In Sandown NH (Southeast, about 20 miles from the coast, and 10miles north of the MA border, you can get these (search between 200K & 300K in my town)
In 2000 we bought a 3Br 1900ft^2 1.5Ba Cape on 1.3 Acres for $180K. It’s worth about $300K now.
In my town, which is immediately west of Chicago, $250K will get you a 2 bedroom, 1 or 2 bath condo, usually with a dining room, in the better part of town (farther from Chicago). My own 1 bed/1bath condo in the same part of town is worth about $110K.
Isn’t that a three hour commute?
In my area near Buffalo NY you get this 2700 sq. foot split level.