I bought my first home in Texas for $88K in 1996. Just under 2K SQ FT, a 3 bedroom, 2 bath with formal dining, EIK, fireplace, laundry room, WIKs throughout, and 2 car garage. At the time, we were making $80K jointly. Property taxes were under $3K a year.
We sold that in 2015 and bought a 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath with massive kitchen, formal dining, fireplace, laundry room, WIKs, 2.5 car garage in a great HOA for $222K.
Home is now worth $430K.
The days of an $88K starter home for couples is over. I feel bad for young people.
By way of comparison, in 1996 in Manassas, VA you would have paid $120K for an 1100 sq ft townhouse.
And Manassas, VA is such an armpit that it’s primarily known for the John Bobbitt incident and that guy (Paul Warner Powell) who wrote the prosecuting attorney a letter (under the assumption that he couldn’t be re-tried) that got him convicted of murder and a trip to Virginia’s electric chair.