Nationally, the median home price is around $400,000, up 20% since 2020. According to PropertyShark, that budget yields a 4,918 square-foot home in Detroit (enough space for a five- to six-bedroom home, depending on room size); in Manhattan, just 267 square feet (barely big enough for a studio apartment). 

But how does $400,000 stack up in Dallas-Fort Worth? The answer lies somewhere in the middle. 

Of course, the median home price varies widely across the Metroplex. Here’s how the square footage shakes out in the largest DFW-area cities. 

Dallas – 1,468 square feet

In Dallas proper, the median sale price is $425,000. That means on a $400,000 budget, homebuyers must shop for homes that are slightly smaller than the typical square footage, staying around the 1,468-square-foot range — less space than in any other large DFW-area city at the price point and about 100 square feet smaller than the median Dallas home (1,560 square feet). That carries a price per square foot of $272.

Fort Worth – 2,111 square feet

In Fort Worth, the median home price is $329,000, and the median home size is 1,736 square feet — so a $400,000 home would be about 2,111 square feet, or $190 per square foot.

Irving – 1,916 square feet

In the center of the Metroplex, Irving has a median home price of $375,000 and a median home size of 1,796. Buyers on a budget of $400,000 can afford about 1,916 square feet of space there, which equates to about $209 per square foot.

Plano – 1,932 square feet

In the priciest part of the DFW area, Plano has a median home price of $499,000 and the largest homes in the area with a median home size of 2,410 square feet. That means $400,000 only gets buyers about 1,932 square feet in Plano at about $207 per square foot — below average for the city but larger than Dallas or Irving.

Arlington – 2,152 square feet

Arlington offers a median size of 1,786 square feet and a median home price of $332,000. That means a $400,000 home is about 2,152 square feet, at about $186 per square foot. 

Garland – 2,355 square feet

The cheapest prices in the Dallas-Fort Worth area can be found in Garland, where the median home price is $282,000. That means buyers on a $400,000 can afford above-average square footage in the city.

Garland’s median home size is 1,660 square feet, so $400,000 will run buyers about 2,355 square feet at a price of about $170 per square foot.