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Sarah Mitchell

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Compass Real Estate · Rhode Island

“Your trusted relocation specialist since 2009. 350+ homes sold. Zero-pressure, data-first approach.”

Rhode Island(512) 555-0184TX License #0512847

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Rhode Island housing market

The typical home in Rhode Island is worth $511,233, up 3.4% over the past year. Homes that actually closed went for a median of $536,900 after 26 days on market. On supply, pricing discipline, and speed of sale, Rhode Island currently reads as a seller's market at 2.4 months of supply. At today's 7.03% 30-year fixed rate, that typical home costs $2,729 a month in principal and interest with 20.0% down.

Sources: Zillow, August 2026 · Refreshes monthly · Redfin, through May 2026 · Freddie Mac via FRED, September 2026

Rhode Island housing market at a glance

Every tile carries the provider and the month it was published

Typical home value

$511,233

+3.4% YoY · Zillow, August 2026

Median sale price

$536,900

Redfin, through May 2026

Typical asking rent

$2,097/mo

Median of 9 cities · Zillow, August 2026

30-yr fixed rate

7.03%

Freddie Mac via FRED, September 2026

Monthly P&I

$2,729

20.0% down, 30-yr fixed

Days on market

0 days YoY

Active listings

1,931

-10.3% YoY

Median household income

$86,372

U.S. Census ACS, 2023

Typical home value is Zillow's ZHVI — the value of a typical home across the whole housing stock, not just the homes that sold. Median sale price is what actually closed. Redfin stopped publishing public market trackers in June 2026; latest available period is May 2026.

Where Rhode Island home prices are heading

Rhode Island's typical home value is $511,233, up 3.4% over 12 months. The two-year number matters more than the one-year number: it spans a full rate cycle rather than a single seasonal swing. Values are at or within a rounding error of their two-year high.

Against the national picture, Rhode Island runs 38.7% above the U.S. typical home value of $368,697, and its 12-month move of +3.4% is outpacing the national pace of +1.2%.

What would have to change for Rhode Island prices to fall. Prices fall when supply outruns demand for long enough that sellers compete on price rather than waiting. Rhode Island is carrying 2.4 months of supply — below the four-month line, so inventory would have to roughly double before sellers lose pricing power. Active listings are -10.3% year over year and new listings -7.3%, so supply is still tightening, which supports prices even with weak demand. The other lever is the rate. At 7.03%, existing owners with cheaper mortgages have little reason to list, which is what has kept supply artificially low across most of the country. A sustained move down in rates unlocks those sellers and adds inventory; it also adds buyers. Which side moves first decides the direction.

Market trends

Statewide monthly series · Redfin, through May 2026 · No longer updating · Redfin stopped publishing public market trackers in June 2026; latest available period is May 2026.

What it costs to buy in Rhode Island at today's rate

Down payment

$102,247

20.0% of value

Loan amount

$408,986

30-yr fixed

Monthly P&I

$2,729

at 7.03%

Income needed

$116,957

28.0% front-end ratio

A buyer purchasing the typical Rhode Island home at $511,233 puts $102,247 down, finances $408,986, and pays $2,729 a month in principal and interest. Property taxes, homeowners insurance, HOA dues, and mortgage insurance sit on top of that and vary by county — budget for them separately rather than assuming the P&I figure is the payment.

Lenders typically want principal and interest under 28.0% of gross income, which puts the qualifying income for that purchase at roughly $116,957. Rhode Island's median household earns $86,372 (Census ACS 2023) — a gap of $30,585 above what the median household brings in. Put differently, the median household would spend 37.9% of gross income on principal and interest alone — above the ratio most lenders underwrite to, which is why buyers here typically need a larger down payment, a co-borrower, or a cheaper city than the statewide typical home.

The value-to-income ratio in Rhode Island is 5.9x. Anything above 5x means prices have run well ahead of local earnings; buyers are relying on dual incomes, prior equity, or outside capital rather than local wages. Model your own numbers in the affordability calculator or the mortgage calculator.

Figures are illustrative, not a quote or a pre-approval. Rate: Freddie Mac via FRED, September 2026 · Value: Zillow, August 2026 · Income: U.S. Census ACS, 2023

Buying in Rhode Island in the next 12 months?

Tell us your timeline. We send the Rhode Island market brief: the price ranges that are actually clearing, the cities where your budget goes furthest, and what to fix on your credit before you apply.

Rent or buy in Rhode Island?

Zillow publishes its rent index per city rather than per state, so the honest statewide read is the median across the 9 largest Rhode Island cities that carry it: $2,097 a month. Set against a typical home value of $511,233, that is a price-to-rent ratio of 20.3x.

Above 20x, the arithmetic favours renting over short horizons: the purchase premium takes years of appreciation to recover, and that appreciation is not guaranteed. Principal and interest on the typical home runs $632 more per month than that typical rent — and that is before taxes, insurance, and the roughly 1% of value a year most owners spend on maintenance.

For a second read on the same question, the Census ACS puts median gross rent across all Rhode Island households — every unit type, not just what is currently listed — at $1,273 a month (2023), with 63.3% of Rhode Island households owning rather than renting. Asking rents lead the ACS figure because they reflect today's new leases rather than the whole stock of existing ones.

Run the rent-vs-buy calculator with your own holding period and down payment — the statewide ratio is a starting point, not an answer.

Supply: what is on the market in Rhode Island

Rhode Island inventory, new listings, sales, and supply, latest month versus the same month a year earlier
Measure	Latest	Year earlier	Change
Active listings	1,931	2,152	-10.3%
New listings	1,356	1,462	-7.3%
Homes sold	814	1,030	-21.0%
Months of supply	2.4	2.1	+0.3
Sale-to-list ratio	100.9%	101.3%	Above asking

What these mean. Active listings is the shelf — everything a buyer could tour today. New listings is restock rate; when it falls faster than sales, the shelf empties. Months of supply is active inventory divided by homes sold per month: at the current sales pace, how many months it would take to sell every home currently listed. Under 4 months of supply tilts toward sellers, 4 to 5 months is the neutral band, and above 5 months tilts toward buyers — above 7 months is a glut. These are the same thresholds the market verdict on every city and ZIP page is scored against. Sale-to-list ratio is the discipline check — above 100% means homes are clearing over asking on average, below means sellers are conceding.

Redfin, through May 2026 · No longer updating — Redfin stopped publishing public market trackers in June 2026; latest available period is May 2026. Zillow's inventory and new-listing counts are published per city and appear on the individual city pages.

Where Rhode Island home values are moving fastest

12-month change in typical home value · Zillow, August 2026

Rising fastest

Falling

1.Woonsocket-0.3%

Computed from Zillow's typical home value for each city at August 2026 against the same month a year earlier, across the 36 largest Rhode Island cities by population. Small markets swing hardest because a handful of transactions moves the index — read the city page before treating a large move as a trend.

The most and least expensive cities in Rhode Island

Typical home value across the 36 largest cities · Zillow, August 2026

Most expensive

1.Newport$965,074
2.Charlestown$703,140
3.Westerly$638,610
4.Tiverton$556,840
5.Hopkinton$494,736
6.Cranston$457,533
7.East Providence$447,287
8.Bradford$436,703
9.Providence$434,698
10.Warwick$422,122

Most affordable

1.Central Falls$382,685
2.Woonsocket$387,096
3.Pawtucket$400,687
4.Warwick$422,122
5.Providence$434,698
6.Bradford$436,703
7.East Providence$447,287
8.Cranston$457,533
9.Hopkinton$494,736
10.Tiverton$556,840

The spread between Newport and Central Falls is 2.5x — one reason a single statewide number is close to useless for a buyer with a fixed budget. Pick the city first, then the price band. Speed is a separate axis from price: Greenville was the quickest of these markets to clear at 8 days on market (Redfin, through May 2026).

How Rhode Island compares

Rhode Island typical home value, 12-month change, median household income, and value-to-income ratio compared with the United States and neighboring states
Market	Typical value	12-mo change	Median income	Value / income
Rhode Island	$511,233	+3.4%	$86,372	5.9x
United States	$368,697	+1.2%	—	—
Massachusetts	$661,896	+2.3%	$101,341	6.5x
Connecticut	$450,873	+5.0%	$93,760	4.8x

The three states above are Rhode Island's nearest land neighbours — the markets buyers most often price against when a move is still negotiable. Connecticut carries a lower typical home value than Rhode Island, which is what makes it the usual destination for equity-funded moves out of Rhode Island.

Values and 12-month changes: Zillow, August 2026 · Refreshes monthly. Income: U.S. Census ACS, 2023. ACS publishes household income per state, not for the nation on the same basis, so the U.S. row shows home value only.

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What to do next in Rhode Island

If you are buying

Set the payment before the price. Start from what you can carry monthly, then work backwards with the affordability calculator — the typical Rhode Island home is $2,729/mo in P&I today.
Pick the city, not the state. Values across Rhode Island run from $382,685 in Central Falls to $965,074 in Newport.
Put two finalists head to head in the city comparison tool before you tour anything.
Fix the credit file before you shop the rate. A better score moves the payment more than haggling over price does at 7.03%.

If you are selling

Price against your city, not the statewide figure — the spread between Rhode Island markets is wider than the year-over-year move in any of them.
Read the supply table above. At 2.4 months of supply, you still set the terms — but only if the home is priced to the comps on day one.
Watch days on market in your city, not the state. The statewide median was 26 days (Redfin, through May 2026); your city page carries its own.
Time the listing against new-listing volume. New listings are -7.3% year over year — less competition than a year ago.

Rhode Island housing market questions

What is the typical home value in Rhode Island?

The typical home value in Rhode Island is $511,233 (Zillow, August 2026). That is a +3.4% change over the past 12 months. The median price of homes that actually sold was $536,900 (Redfin, through May 2026); sale prices skew toward whatever segment is transacting, which is why they differ from the typical-value figure.

Are Rhode Island home prices going up or down?

Rhode Island home values are up 3.4% year over year (Zillow, August 2026). Values are at or near their highest reading in the past two years.

How much income do you need to buy a home in Rhode Island?

At the current 30-year fixed rate of 7.03%, a $511,233 home with 20.0% down carries roughly $2,729 a month in principal and interest. Using the 28% front-end ratio most lenders underwrite to, that implies a household income of about $116,957 before taxes, insurance, HOA dues, or mortgage insurance are added. Rhode Island's median household income is $86,372 (Census ACS, 2023), a gap of $30,585 above the median household. These figures are illustrative, not a quote or a pre-approval.

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Rhode Island?

Typical asking rent across the largest Rhode Island cities Zillow publishes rent data for is $2,097 a month (median of 9 cities, Zillow, August 2026). Against a typical home value of $511,233, that is a price-to-rent ratio of 20.3x. Ratios under about 15x generally favour buying if you plan to stay put; above about 20x, renting and investing the difference tends to win over short horizons. Principal and interest alone runs $632 more than that typical rent each month, before taxes, insurance, and maintenance.

Which Rhode Island cities are the most affordable?

Among the largest cities we track in Rhode Island, the lowest typical home values are in Central Falls ($382,685), Woonsocket ($387,096), Pawtucket ($400,687), Warwick ($422,122), Providence ($434,698). Values are Zillow's typical-home-value index for August 2026.

Which Rhode Island cities are the most expensive?

The highest typical home values among the largest Rhode Island cities are in Newport ($965,074), Charlestown ($703,140), Westerly ($638,610), Tiverton ($556,840), Hopkinton ($494,736). Price per square foot, inventory, and days on market for each are on the individual city pages.

Which Rhode Island cities are appreciating the fastest?

Over the past 12 months the largest home-value gains among Rhode Island cities we track were in Newport (+8.8%), Westerly (+8.7%), Bradford (+4.2%), Hopkinton (+3.3%), Charlestown (+3.2%). Fast appreciation usually reflects constrained supply, in-migration, or a small transaction base — check the individual city page before reading it as a trend.

How long do homes take to sell in Rhode Island?

Homes in Rhode Island spent a median of 26 days on market in the last month Redfin published (Redfin, through May 2026). That is 0 days faster than the same month a year earlier. The quickest market among the state's largest cities was Greenville at 8 days. Redfin stopped publishing public market trackers in June 2026; latest available period is May 2026.

How does Rhode Island compare to neighboring states?

Rhode Island's typical home value of $511,233 compares with Massachusetts at $661,896, Connecticut at $450,873. The U.S. typical home value is $368,697, putting Rhode Island 38.7% above the national figure. Connecticut is cheaper on a typical-value basis.

Is now a good time to buy in Rhode Island?

That depends on your timeline, not the headline. The measurable inputs today: a 30-year fixed rate of 7.03%, 2.4 months of supply statewide (Redfin, through May 2026), active listings -10.3% year over year, and home values +3.4% over the past year. Buyers with a five-year-plus horizon are mostly exposed to the payment, not the price, so the rate you can qualify for matters more than the month you buy. Properties Incorporated is an independent data platform, not a brokerage or lender — this is information, not advice.

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