West Virginia Housing Market: Home Prices, Rent and Affordability
The typical West Virginia home is worth $179,496, up 3.1% over the past year and up 22.5% over five years, 51.3% below the national $368,697 (Zillow, latest release). That ranks #50 of 50 on price. A 20%-down mortgage runs $924 a month and takes about $47,071 of income; the median West Virginia household earns $54,515, enough to clear that bar.
In Charleston, the state's largest metro, typical rent is $1,229 a month against a $777 principal-and-interest payment on the typical home, so buying is $452 a month cheaper before taxes, insurance and maintenance. The market is warm: 23.3% of listings cut their price (national 26.4%), homes go pending in 45 days (national 53), and for-sale inventory is up 2.2% from a year ago.
All figures are Zillow Research's published numbers for August; median household income is from the Census Bureau. How the data works → · Home prices in all 50 states →
West Virginia Housing by the Numbers
How much does a house cost in West Virginia? The typical home is worth $179,496, the median sale price is $229,333 and the median list price $249,467. The six figures below describe the market this month, each with the national comparison.
How Have West Virginia Home Prices Changed?
The typical West Virginia home value every month since 2000, with the national typical home as a dashed line. Values rose 3.1% over the past year, are up 22.5% over five years, up 58.4% over ten, and up 139% since January 2000.
Is It Cheaper to Rent or Buy in West Virginia?
Two direct answers from the Zillow data. Rent versus buy sets typical asking rent in Charleston, the state's largest metro, against the mortgage payment on the typical home there, since Zillow publishes rents by metro rather than by state. The affordability gap is the income needed to buy the typical West Virginia home minus what the median household actually earns.
Rent vs. buy · Charleston, WV
The payment excludes property tax (0.55% of value in West Virginia), insurance and maintenance, all of which push the cost of owning higher; renting builds no equity. If values kept rising at the past five years' pace (22.5%), equity would narrow that gap over a long stay.
Affordability gap · #1 of 50
A $924 monthly payment takes 20.3% of the median West Virginia household's income before property tax and insurance; lenders generally cap total housing costs near 28–31%. Full budget for your household →
Is West Virginia a Buyer's or a Seller's Market?
Market temperature is our label from three Zillow signals compared with the national market: the share of listings with a price cut, days from listing to pending (days on market), and whether homes for sale are up from a year ago. West Virginia is warm: it slightly favors sellers: one of the three market signals points cooler than the national market.
Median sale price $229,333 against a median list price of $249,467, so the typical home closes 8.1% below asking.
Where the West Virginia market is heading
Compared with a year ago, two of the three signals point looser, in buyers' favor: the share of listings with a price cut is down 0.4 points from a year ago to 23.3%, homes take 5 days longer to go pending than a year ago (45 now), and the number of homes for sale is up 2.2%. The typical home value rose 3.1% over the same period and is at an all-time high. We publish no forecasts: these are Zillow's current-month readings, not a prediction of where West Virginia home prices go next.
Home Values and Rents in West Virginia Cities
Zillow publishes a city-level home value or rent for 16 of the West Virginia cities we track. The most expensive is Martinsburg ($312,100) and the cheapest Clarksburg ($112,463). Click a city for its full profile.
| City | Population | Home value | 1 yr | 5 yr | Rent | Rent 1 yr | Value ÷ income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charleston | 47,918 | $166,696 | +2.6% | ||||
| Huntington | 46,189 | $144,450 | +3.6% | ||||
| Morgantown | 30,273 | $285,604 | +3.5% | ||||
| Parkersburg | 29,461 | $151,152 | -0.2% | ||||
| Wheeling | 26,670 | $153,248 | +4.7% | ||||
| Martinsburg | 18,805 | $312,100 | +3.7% | ||||
| Weirton | 18,785 | $149,807 | +6.6% | ||||
| Fairmont | 18,303 | $194,875 | +3.3% | ||||
| Beckley | 16,977 | $151,973 | +2.4% | ||||
| Clarksburg | 15,829 | $112,463 | -1.1% | ||||
| South Charleston | 13,594 | $175,312 | +5.3% | ||||
| Vienna | 10,575 | $191,235 | +1.7% | ||||
| Bluefield | 9,511 | $119,264 | -2.9% | ||||
| Bridgeport | 9,292 | $304,103 | +3.4% | ||||
| Oak Hill | 8,057 | $157,519 | +0.7% | ||||
| Moundsville | 7,934 | $128,275 | +1.4% |
Home value and rent are Zillow's city-level indexes; population and median household income are Census ACS. Cities without a Zillow index are omitted. All West Virginia cities ranked →
How West Virginia Compares With Nearby States
The South states closest to West Virginia on price. Each card links to that state's housing page; the compare link puts the two states side by side on every category.
More on West Virginia
West Virginia dashboard
→Overall rank and grade, every category score, taxes, utilities, safety, schools and all tracked cities.
What you'd keep in West Virginia
→Take-home after housing, taxes, childcare, utilities and groceries for your household and income.
Who is moving to West Virginia
→IRS migration data: where new residents come from, where leavers go, and what both groups earn.
West Virginia Housing Market FAQ
What is the average house price in West Virginia?
$179,496 is the typical West Virginia home value according to the latest Zillow Research release of the Zillow Home Value Index, which tracks homes in the middle third of the market. The median sale price was $229,333 and the median list price $249,467. That makes West Virginia the #50 most expensive state; the national typical home is worth $368,697.
Are home prices dropping in West Virginia?
No. The typical West Virginia home value rose 3.1% over the past year and is at an all-time high. Over five years it is up 22.5% and over ten years up 58.4%. Nationally, values rose 1.2% over the year.
How have West Virginia home prices changed over the past 1, 5 and 10 years?
+3.1% over one year, +22.5% over five years and +58.4% over ten years for the typical West Virginia home value, per the latest Zillow Research release; the national figures are +1.2%, +20.3% and +77.9%. Since January 2000 the typical West Virginia home is up 139%. The monthly chart above shows the full series against the national line.
Will the West Virginia housing market crash?
We publish no forecasts, so this page cannot answer that; it can show the current readings and the historical worst case. Right now the typical West Virginia home value is at an all-time high after it rose 3.1% over the past year; 23.3% of listings have cut their price (national 26.4%), homes go pending in 45 days (national 53), and inventory is up 2.2% from a year ago, per Zillow Research. The largest decline in Zillow's monthly series for West Virginia was 6.6% from August 2008 to May 2011, and values took 47 months to regain that peak.
Is it a good time to buy a house in West Virginia?
The West Virginia market is warm right now, which means it slightly favors sellers: one of the three market signals points cooler than the national market. 23.3% of listings cut their price (national 26.4%), homes go pending in 45 days (national 53), and for-sale inventory is up 2.2% from a year ago. Affordability is better than most states: the $47,071 of income needed to buy the typical home is below the median household income of $54,515. Whether the timing is right also depends on mortgage rates and how long you plan to stay.
Is West Virginia a buyer's or seller's market?
West Virginia leans toward sellers. Fewer listings are cutting prices than the national average (23.3% vs. 26.4%), homes take 45 days to go pending (national 53), and the number of homes for sale is up 2.2% from a year ago at 5K listings. One of those three signals points toward buyers.
What is the average rent in West Virginia?
In Charleston, West Virginia's largest metro, the typical asking rent is $1,229 a month, up 4.1% over the past year and up 28.3% over five years, per the Zillow Observed Rent Index. The national typical rent is $1,948. Among West Virginia cities we track, rents range from $829 to $1,700 a month.
Is it cheaper to rent or buy in West Virginia?
Buying is cheaper month to month in Charleston, West Virginia's largest metro. Typical rent is $1,229 and the principal-and-interest payment on the typical home with 20% down is $777, a difference of $452 a month in favor of buying. The payment excludes property tax (0.55% of value in West Virginia), insurance and maintenance, and renting builds no equity, so the full answer depends on how long you stay.
How much income do you need to buy a house in West Virginia?
About $47,071 a year, using Zillow's assumptions of 20% down at current mortgage rates and a payment of no more than 30% of income. The median West Virginia household earns $54,515, so the typical household clears the bar with $7,444 to spare. That is the #1 smallest affordability gap of the 50 states. The monthly payment of $924 equals 20.3% of the median household's income.
Where are homes cheapest and most expensive in West Virginia?
Among the West Virginia cities we track with Zillow data, the most expensive typical home is in Martinsburg ($312,100) and the cheapest in Clarksburg ($112,463). Also at the top: Bridgeport ($304,103), Morgantown ($285,604), and Fairmont ($194,875). The city table above lists every tracked West Virginia city with its value, one-year change and rent.
How does West Virginia compare with nearby states?
In the South, the closest comparisons on price are Mississippi ($197,606, up 2.3% in a year), Louisiana ($217,039, up 2.1% in a year), and Oklahoma ($223,261, up 2.8% in a year). West Virginia's typical home is $179,496, up 3.1%. On affordability, West Virginia ranks #1 of 50 versus Mississippi at #4, Louisiana at #17, and Oklahoma at #8.
How current is the West Virginia housing data?
Every figure on this page comes from Zillow Research, which publishes state, metro and city data free each month for the prior month; the latest month shown is August. Median household income is from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. We rebuild the page from the newest Zillow files as they are released.
Home values, rents, mortgage payments, income needed, inventory, price cuts, days to pending and sale and list prices are published by Zillow Research and shown as released, with attribution. Median household income and city populations are from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey. Home prices and housing markets in all 50 states →