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The 20 most affordable cities in Tennessee to buy a house
Homeownership is fundamental to the American dream. It offers wealth, security, community, and countless other benefits. Yet for many Tennessee residents, the dream feels increasingly out of reach—even as incomes rise and mortgage rates fall. Near-record prices have made homes hard to come by and often even harder to afford, leaving buyers and sellers stuck and younger generations priced out.
But affordable pockets still exist. In cities across the state, residents can comfortably spend around 30% of their income or less on housing, which is widely considered the affordable threshold.
To find out where these cities are, Redfin Real Estate ranked the most affordable cities in Tennessee, based on their local payment to income ratios. All data is an average for the January-October 2025 period. To see the most affordable cities in the country, read this recent Redfin article.
#1. Bartlett, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 24.8%
- Median sale price: $326,489
- Median household income: $100,660
- Income needed to buy: $83,373
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,084
- See homes for sale in Bartlett on Redfin.com
#2. Germantown, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 27.6%
- Median sale price: $521,370
- Median household income: $144,799
- Income needed to buy: $133,139
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,328
- See homes for sale in Germantown on Redfin.com
#3. Arlington, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 28.1%
- Median sale price: $462,314
- Median household income: $125,909
- Income needed to buy: $118,058
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,951
- See homes for sale in Arlington on Redfin.com
#4. Collierville, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 30.4%
- Median sale price: $533,430
- Median household income: $134,319
- Income needed to buy: $136,218
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,405
- See homes for sale in Collierville on Redfin.com
#5. Portland, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 33.4%
- Median sale price: $315,130
- Median household income: $72,380
- Income needed to buy: $80,472
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,012
- See homes for sale in Portland on Redfin.com
#6. White House, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 34.1%
- Median sale price: $388,954
- Median household income: $87,315
- Income needed to buy: $99,324
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,483
- See homes for sale in White House on Redfin.com
#7. Powell, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 34.4%
- Median sale price: $383,209
- Median household income: $85,281
- Income needed to buy: $97,857
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,446
- See homes for sale in Powell on Redfin.com
#8. Lakeland, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 35.2%
- Median sale price: $522,649
- Median household income: $113,843
- Income needed to buy: $133,465
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,337
- See homes for sale in Lakeland on Redfin.com
#9. Clarksville, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 36.0%
- Median sale price: $313,479
- Median household income: $66,786
- Income needed to buy: $80,051
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,001
- See homes for sale in Clarksville on Redfin.com
#10. Dickson, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 38.0%
- Median sale price: $342,499
- Median household income: $69,074
- Income needed to buy: $87,462
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,187
- See homes for sale in Dickson on Redfin.com
#11. La Vergne, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 38.4%
- Median sale price: $403,518
- Median household income: $80,418
- Income needed to buy: $103,043
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,576
- See homes for sale in La Vergne on Redfin.com
#12. Farragut, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 38.8%
- Median sale price: $720,843
- Median household income: $142,402
- Income needed to buy: $184,077
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $4,602
- See homes for sale in Farragut on Redfin.com
#13. Bristol, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 39.0%
- Median sale price: $279,846
- Median household income: $55,007
- Income needed to buy: $71,462
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $1,787
- See homes for sale in Bristol on Redfin.com
#14. Maryville, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 39.4%
- Median sale price: $407,777
- Median household income: $79,340
- Income needed to buy: $104,131
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,603
- See homes for sale in Maryville on Redfin.com
#15. Oak Ridge, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 39.6%
- Median sale price: $366,887
- Median household income: $71,000
- Income needed to buy: $93,689
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,342
- See homes for sale in Oak Ridge on Redfin.com
#16. Spring Hill, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 41.0%
- Median sale price: $571,071
- Median household income: $106,658
- Income needed to buy: $145,830
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,646
- See homes for sale in Spring Hill on Redfin.com
#17. Mount Juliet, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 41.7%
- Median sale price: $586,366
- Median household income: $107,847
- Income needed to buy: $149,736
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,743
- See homes for sale in Mount Juliet on Redfin.com
#18. Millington, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 43.8%
- Median sale price: $295,768
- Median household income: $51,695
- Income needed to buy: $75,528
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $1,888
- See homes for sale in Millington on Redfin.com
#19. Smyrna, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 44.3%
- Median sale price: $453,677
- Median household income: $78,409
- Income needed to buy: $115,852
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $2,896
- See homes for sale in Smyrna on Redfin.com
#20. Hendersonville, Tennessee
- Payment to income ratio: 45.3%
- Median sale price: $540,928
- Median household income: $91,503
- Income needed to buy: $138,133
- Median monthly mortgage payment: $3,453
- See homes for sale in Hendersonville on Redfin.com
This story was produced by Redfin Real Estate and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
