Priced Out? A Condo or Townhome Could Be Your Way In.

Today's home prices have a lot of buyers – especially first-time buyers – wondering if there’s even anything out there that’s in their budget. But owning a home may be more within reach than you think. Sometimes, it just means considering a different type of home.

Condos and townhomes can be a great way to buy without stretching every last dollar. And right now, two things make them worth a serious look.

There Are More Condos and Townhomes To Choose From

Maybe you feel like there’s just nothing out there for you, and you’ve exhausted all your options. But have you considered condos or townhomes? A lot of buyers start by looking for a single-family, detached home without even realizing what that search omits from their pool of choices.

According to HousingWire Data, there were 233,030 condos and townhomes for sale this June. That's more than any June in at least the past decade, and more than double the number available back in 2022 (see graph below):

That means there are more options out there in this segment of the market – and that’s especially good news for first-time buyers. These types of homes can be a great way to break into the market for less.

Just remember, that's the national number. What's available will depend on where you're looking. But generally speaking, more options means less competition, more time to decide, and more room to negotiate.

They Also Tend To Cost Less Than Single-Family Homes

Price is the other big draw. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the median condo price was $380,000 in June. In contrast, the median single-family home price was $446,400 (see graph below):

That's a difference of more than $66,000.

A big reason why? Condos are usually smaller than single-family homes. And smaller homes can come with smaller price tags.

And if you don't need all that extra space, that lower entry price could be exactly what gets you through the door.

Condo or Townhome? How They’re Different.

For buyers who feel priced out of the market, a condo or townhome could be a way in. But there are some things to know. Before you start checking out homes, it’s good to understand how these two compare to each other – and to a single-family home.

• With a single-family detached home, you own the house and the land it sits on, and you don’t share any walls with neighbors. That means the most space and privacy. But it also usually comes with a higher tag, and all the maintenance is on you.

• With a townhome, you own the building and the lot it sits on. They're usually multi-level, so you get more space, and you share two walls at most. You'll also have more say over how your home looks and how repairs get done, but more of that upkeep falls on you.

• With a condo, you own just the inside of your unit and may have access to community features like a pool or gym. The building and shared space belong to everyone who lives there, which means you have less maintenance responsibilities. But you’ll also likely have more neighbors around you, less control over building decisions, and higher HOA fees since the HOA handles the exterior and common areas.

Bottom Line

A condo or townhome could be your path to owning a home without blowing your budget. Let’s connect to see what's for sale in our area and figure out which type of home fits your lifestyle, and your bottom line.

The Whole Story in One Table

Memphis Metro, Year by Year

Figures as reported in each year's own December MAAR report (MAARdata revises historical numbers slightly over time). Months of supply = December listings ÷ average monthly sales. *June 2026 listings — a 24-month high. 2025–26 rates approximate; Freddie Mac's 30-year average was 6.49% the week of July 9, 2026.

Chart I

Sales Volume Follows Interest Rates

Watch the light-blue rate line against the navy sales bars. When money got cheaper (2012–2016, 2020–2021), transactions climbed. When rates doubled in 2022–23, sales fell 30% from peak in two years — the volume response to rates is fast and brutal. But notice 2024–25: sales flattened around 15,000–15,700 even with rates near 7%. That's the market finding its footing at a new normal — roughly the same annual pace as 2012–2014.

Chart II

Prices Are a Different Animal

Here's the chart that should reframe how we all think about "crashes." In eighteen years, the metro median has fallen meaningfully exactly once: 2008–2011, peak-to-trough −13% ($99,000 → $85,900) — and that took a global financial crisis, mass unemployment, and thousands of forced sales. The 2022–23 rate shock, the fastest rate increase in 40 years? The median dipped 2.3%, twice, and resumed climbing. From the 2011 trough to today, the Memphis median is up 168%.

Charts III & IV

The Supply Collapse — and Why Prices Held

December active listings

Annual foreclosure actions

These two charts explain everything. Inventory fell 84% from the 2008 peak (12,113 listings in January 2008) to the 2021 floor. Foreclosures fell 93% — from 6,438 a year to a few hundred. In 2009, bank sales were 38.6% of every transaction in the metro (5,866 of 15,186). In recent years they've run 0.5–1.6%. When rates spiked in 2022 there was no wave of forced sellers to flood the market — so prices never broke. Today's 5,067 listings sound high after 2021, but we're still 52% below the 2008 supply peak.

The Eras

Six Chapters of Local History

The Distillation

Three Patterns Worth Remembering

Context for Today

Where June 2026 Sits in Eighteen Years of History

The honest translation: today's market is not 2008 (no distress, half the inventory), and it's not 2021 (three times the selection, real negotiating room). It's closest to 2014–15 — a normal market that rewards preparation and punishes mispricing. If you're waiting for either a crash or 3% rates, this dataset suggests you're waiting for a foreclosure wave that doesn't exist — or an emergency the Federal Reserve has no intention of repeating.

The Forecast Framework

Four Dials to Watch — and What They'd Mean

Nothing here is a prediction — it's a framework. No one can tell you where the market will be next year; what history can tell you is which indicator answers which question. Any good agent — ours or otherwise — can pull the current reading for your neighborhood.

The Headline Numbers

June 2026 at a Glance

"Months of supply" = how long it would take to sell every home currently listed at the current sales pace. Under ~5 months generally favors sellers; over ~6 favors buyers. Memphis sits at 3.4 — still seller-leaning, but the most balanced we've been in two years.

The Big Picture

Is the Market Crashing? No — It's Normalizing.

You may have heard that home sales are down. That's true: the Memphis area recorded 6,942 sales in the first half of 2026, about 8% fewer than the same period last year. But here's what the headlines skip — prices rose at the same time. The median sale price climbed 4.5% to $230,000, and nearly $2 billion in homes still changed hands in six months.

In a true downturn, sales and prices fall together. What we have instead is a pickier market: fewer transactions, happening at higher prices, taking a reasonable ~49 days. That's a market returning to normal after several frenzied years — not one falling apart.

The Supply Story

Buyers Finally Have Choices

Active listings reached 5,067 in June — the highest level in at least two years, and 12.2% more than last June. For buyers, that means real selection and real negotiating room on terms, repairs, and closing help. For sellers, it means your home now has visible competition — pricing accurately from day one matters more than it has in years. Homes priced to the current market still sell in about 49 days; overpriced homes sit while the neighbors' sell.

Around the Area

How Our Communities Performed in June

A note on reading this honestly: in smaller communities like Arlington (21 June sales) and Lakeland (35), one month is a tiny sample — a few closings either way swings the percentage wildly. Year-to-date columns are the more reliable trend. Arlington, for example, shows −27.6% for June yet its year-to-date sales are exactly flat with prices up 4.3% — a market short on homes to sell, not short on buyers.

Community Highlights

Three Stories Worth Knowing

What It Means for You

Practical Guidance, Whichever Side You're On

Every neighborhood is its own market. These are metro-level patterns — the right decision for your street depends on hyper-local data any good agent (ours or otherwise!) can pull for you.