In the face of rising mortgage rates and a faltering economy, the United States' most expensive ZIP codes have changed — by merely becoming more expensive.
Property Shark has released its annual list of the country's most expensive ZIP codes based on their median sold home price. The report found that of the 128 ZIP codes included in the top 100 in 2022 — the extra 28 ZIP codes are ties — 86% were even pricier than last year.
For the sixth year in a row the posh San Francisco suburb of Atherton, California — which has counted a number of tech executives including Marc Andreessen as well as NBA all-star Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors among its residents — claimed the top spot, with a median sold home price of $7.9 million. That's $400,000 more than its median price just last year.
The tony Hamptons, New York, enclave of Sagaponack follows as the country's second priciest ZIP code, with a median sold home price of $5.75 million — $750,000 more than in 2021, when Sagaponack ranked as the third priciest ZIP after Boston's Back Bay neighborhood.
A whopping 14 ZIP codes on the list now have a median sold home price of $4 million or more. And the two ZIPs that tied for no. 100, with a $1.78 million median sold home price, are still 9% higher than last year's final entry.
Almost every home in the US has exploded in value over the last two years, from modestly priced digs to the poshest mansions. Rich people got richer during the pandemic, with a study from Oxfam finding that American billionaires grew their wealth by 62% from March 2020 to March 2022.
And while rising interest rates have dampened stock markets, crushed crypto, and even started to curtail home values in some areas, wealthy people seem to be largely insulated from the economic uncertainty.
That said, prices are growing at a slightly slower clip than in 2021, when 25 top ZIP codes recorded a median price increase of 25% or more from 2020.
This year, just 16 ZIPs saw that much of a boost, including San Diego-adjacent Del Mar, California's 39% price growth to a median of $2.57 million; the Martha's Vineyard community of Chilmark, Massachusetts's 38% price growth to a median of $2.3 million; and, near Newport Beach, California, Corona Del Mar's 37% price growth to a median of $3.705 million.
The top two ZIP codes are also indicative of a trend: places in California and New York dominate the ranking. Over 70% of ZIP codes on the list are in California; 13% are in New York.
Combined, the two pricey states account for 107 of the 128 ZIPs on the list. Forty-six of the ZIPs are in the San Francisco Bay Area alone, helping it maintain its hearty lead as the most expensive metro area in the country.
The other top ZIPs are spread between just eight states, including Washington with its Seattle suburb of Medina (ranking no. 6 at $4.75 million) and Florida with its exclusive Miami Beach community on Fisher Island (ranking no. 4 at $5.2 million).
Read on for this year's top 30 ZIP codes, and see how it's changed since 2020 while you're at it.