Million-Dollar Space

Affluent homebuyers searching for spacious properties with a $1 million budget will find the most value in the Houston metro area, according to a new Realtor.com study.

The Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands region ranked No. 4 nationally in Realtor.com’s 2025 analysis of where buyers can get the most square footage for $1 million. The report, based on September 2025 listing trends, identified the top five U.S. metros where a $1–$2 million budget stretches the furthest—and the five where it buys the least space.

The top spot went to the Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Georgia metro, where a $1 million home averages 4,530 square feet. In comparison, buyers in the Houston area can purchase a 4,112-square-foot home for the same price—about 50% more than the national average of 2,994 square feet.

For context, Zillow reported Houston’s median home list price in September at $314,668. During the same month, the greater Houston area had fewer than 1,600 listings priced at $1 million or more, and about 10% of luxury listings started around $800,000.

Realtor.com senior economist Anthony Smith explained that luxury buyers find greater value in Southern markets such as Houston, where they can secure larger, newer properties with more land and amenities for their money. “Luxury buyers are increasingly seeking value — and that doesn’t always mean a lower price tag, but rather more home for the money,” Smith said. “In markets like Honolulu or the Bay Area, buyers are paying for proximity, views, and prestige. In contrast, in many Southern and Midwestern metros, high-end buyers can find spacious homes at a fraction of coastal prices.”

Elsewhere in Texas, the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington area ranked No. 5, with a $1 million budget affording roughly 4,072 square feet.

Top five metros offering the most square footage for $1 million:

1. Atlanta–Sandy Springs–Roswell, Georgia

2. Denver–Aurora–Centennial, Colorado

3. Minneapolis–St. Paul–Bloomington, Minnesota–Wisconsin

4. Houston–Pasadena–The Woodlands, Texas

5. Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington, Texas

Metros offering the least square footage for $1 million:

1. Urban Honolulu, Hawaii

2. San Jose–Sunnyvale–Santa Clara, California

3. San Francisco–Oakland–Fremont, California

4. Los Angeles–Long Beach–Anaheim, California

5. New York–Newark–New Jersey Metro Area