Home prices in Vermont and Burlington: median value and trend

What the median home value is

The Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS) asks owners: “About how much do you think this house and lot, apartment, or mobile home (and lot, if owned) would sell for if it were for sale?” The median value in table B25077 is the middle answer among all owner-occupied homes in an area, from condos to large houses.

This is the owner’s own estimate. It is not a sale price, not an appraisal and not a list price. It covers every owner-occupied home, including homes bought decades ago, so it describes the existing stock rather than what buyers paid this year.

The latest one-year ACS estimates cover 2024. The Census Bureau plans to release the 2025 one-year estimates on October 29, 2026, so the figures below will change at that point.

How prices have moved: the FHFA index

The ACS gives a level. To see the trend, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) publishes a House Price Index built on repeat sales: it compares the prices of the same single-family homes each time they sell. FHFA’s flagship index uses seasonally adjusted, purchase-only data from mortgages bought or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The latest quarterly release, published August 25, 2026, covers the second quarter of 2026. FHFA’s release names Vermont as the state with the second-highest annual appreciation, at 7.3%, behind Alaska at 8.3%.

Source: FHFA House Price Index, purchase-only, seasonally adjusted, quarterly files for states and the U.S. Changes calculated by Payotte from the published index values.

FHFA’s purchase-only metro file does not include a series for the Burlington–South Burlington area, so there is no metro trend to show here. The state index is the closest official measure.

Vermont prices rose about three and a half times faster than the national index over the past year, and about half again as much over five years.

A worked example

Take a Vermont home worth $300,000 in the second quarter of 2021. If it had followed the state index exactly, it would have been worth about $456,000 in the second quarter of 2026 (+52.2%). Over the last year alone, a $400,000 home would have gained about $29,000 (+7.3%). A single home can move very differently from the index: location, condition and renovations matter more than the average.

How to use these figures when buying

• Use the ACS median for budgets and comparisons between places. It is the only measure here that gives a dollar level with the same method for the state, the county and the metro area.
• Use the FHFA index for the direction of prices. It tells you whether prices are rising or falling, not what a given home is worth.
• For a specific home, look at recent sales and the appraisal. Your lender orders an appraisal before it approves the loan; see our guide to home appraisal costs.

Closing costs come on top of the price. Our Vermont closing costs guide explains who pays what, and our page on buying a home in Burlington applies these numbers to the city. First-time buyers can also check the Vermont first-time buyer programs, whose purchase price limit for Chittenden County is lower than the county median above.

Method and dataset

ACS one-year median value. U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 1-Year Estimates, vintage 2024 (released in 2025), table B25077 “Median Value (Dollars)”, variable B25077_001E with margin of error B25077_001M. Universe: owner-occupied housing units. Geographies: United States (0100000US), Vermont (0400000US50), Burlington–South Burlington metro area (310M700US15540), Chittenden County (0500000US50007). Values were read on data.census.gov on October 13, 2026. The one-year series has no estimate for the city of Burlington (1600000US5010675).

ACS five-year median value. Same table, vintage 2020-2024 five-year estimates, for the United States, Vermont, Chittenden County and the city of Burlington. The 2025 one-year estimates are scheduled for October 29, 2026.

FHFA index. FHFA House Price Index, quarterly purchase-only, seasonally adjusted series, files hpi_po_state.txt (Vermont) and hpi_po_us_and_census.txt (USA), release of August 25, 2026, data through the second quarter of 2026. Index values used: Vermont 422.18 (Q2 2025), 297.64 (Q2 2021) and 452.94 (Q2 2026); United States 426.58, 326.58 and 435.69. Changes are the ratio of the Q2 2026 value to the earlier value, minus one. The U.S. one-year result (+2.1%) and Vermont’s 7.3% match the figures in FHFA’s release. The metro file hpi_po_metro.txt has no Burlington–South Burlington (CBSA 15540) series. FHFA plans its next quarterly release, with third-quarter 2026 data, on November 24, 2026.