U.S. News
America’s Top 10 Most Expensive Zip Codes Revealed
By CM Chaney · November 12, 2023
In brief…
- Atherton, CA and Sagaponack, NY topped list of priciest zip codes with $8M+ medians
- 7 of top 10 zip codes were in California including Santa Barbara and Beverly Hills
- Orange County had 5 zip codes in top 100 nationally
- Exclusivity of top areas comes with low diversity and poverty rates
The priciest zip codes in the U.S. for 2023 have been revealed in a new report by Property Shark, with California and New York locales dominating the top spots.
The Bay Area town of Atherton took the #1 spot with a median home sale price of $8.3 million. Long Island’s Southampton village of Sagaponack followed at #2 with a median of $8.1 million. Both towns saw major price hikes from 2022.
Seven of the top 10 priciest zip codes were in California, with several in Orange County. Santa Barbara (#4) and Beverly Hills (#5) made the cut, along with less expected areas like Stinson Beach (#6) and Newport Beach (#7).
Joining the Golden State locales were Sagaponack, NY (#2), Miami Beach, FL (#3), and Water Mill, NY (#6). Medina, WA (#9) rounded out the top 10 with a median sale price of $4.4 million.
Several factors drove the eye-popping prices, from proximity to tech hubs like San Francisco to celebrity enclaves like Montecito in Santa Barbara. Orange County had five zip codes in the top 100 nationwide.
While home prices declined in many areas in 2023, these elite zip codes continue to shatter records. But their exclusivity comes at a cost - most are predominantly white with poverty rates under 5%.
Affordability has hit 39-year lows nationally, but a few cities are seeing sellers slash prices. For most buyers, however, the top 10 priciest zip codes remain firmly out of reach.