Analysis shows raw land leads gains while inventory declines continue to reshape housing development costs.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Land prices across the United States have risen sharply since before the pandemic, driven by sustained demand and a declining supply of available parcels, according to a new analysis by Realtor.com.
The report, released April 21, found that the median price per acre climbed 76.6 percent between the first quarter of 2019 and the first quarter of 2026. Over the same period, available land listings fell by 23.6 percent, with 426,986 listings recorded nationwide at the start of 2026 and a median price of $62,365 per acre.
Land Prices by yourNEWS Media
Economists attributed the trend to long-term supply constraints intensified by pandemic-era demand. “The pandemic didn’t only drain home inventory, it drained land inventory, and that loss is permanent,” said senior economist Joel Berner in the report. “When a builder develops a parcel, that land never returns to the market.”
Berner noted that until development pipelines expand significantly, both limited supply and elevated prices are expected to persist, potentially increasing the cost of future home construction.
The largest price gains were recorded in undeveloped parcels. Raw land without prior construction rose 86.5 percent over the period, outpacing other categories. Land already prepared for building saw smaller but still significant growth, increasing 53.3 percent.
Regional differences highlight varying market pressures. The Northeast recorded the steepest increase, with land prices rising 101.5 percent since early 2019 to a median of $47,511 per acre. Analysts attributed the surge to limited availability, dense existing development, and regulatory constraints such as zoning restrictions and environmental rules.
The Midwest posted an 89.5 percent increase, with the highest median price among regions at $73,448 per acre. In the South, prices rose nearly 85 percent to $63,110 per acre, while the West experienced a more moderate increase of 32.2 percent, reaching $54,423 per acre.
The report noted that Western markets followed a different trajectory, citing a slowdown in residential construction activity. Single-family building permits declined more sharply in that region during 2025 than elsewhere, while housing inventories in some Western states returned to or exceeded pre-pandemic levels, reducing demand for new land acquisitions.
At the metropolitan level, Port St. Lucie, Florida, and Fargo, North Dakota, recorded the largest increases in land value, each exceeding 310 percent growth in price per acre since the pandemic period. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Kansas City, Missouri, also ranked among the top-performing markets, with gains above 260 percent.
On the supply side, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, experienced the steepest decline in available land inventory over the past decade, dropping 72.1 percent. Morristown, Tennessee, and Wilmington, North Carolina, also saw reductions exceeding 61 percent. Many of the markets with the sharpest declines are located in the eastern United States, where undeveloped land is more limited.
The report identified 2024 as a key turning point, as parcels purchased during the surge in demand between 2020 and 2022 were converted into residential developments between 2023 and 2025.
“Homes eventually return to the listing pool when put up for resale, but land that is developed is permanently converted,” the report stated. “The post-pandemic buying frenzy put a lasting dent in the supply of land for sale across the United States.”
The findings suggest that constrained land availability, combined with ongoing demand, will continue to influence housing costs and development patterns in the years ahead.
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