With a median home price of $610,000, the Big Apple exceeds the rest of the country by 53.9%. Additionally, food (+6.7%), transportation (+7.3%), and healthcare (+3.7%) are also more expensive here. While the real estate appreciation rate for the past five years was 28% and prices have almost doubled since 2013, the market cooled off in the past year. Compared to 2019, home prices have dropped 2.4%, and mortgage rates decreased by 0.9%, making this a great time to invest in a condominium or house before the market picks back up.