House hunters in the United States continue to face the double whammy of near-record home prices and high mortgage rates. In some cases, the mortgage interest alone might be enough to dissuade people from buying a home.
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Nationally, the average rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.74%, according to the latest data from Freddie Mac. That hasn’t changed much over the past year but it remains well above the sub-3% rates seen earlier in the decade.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve reports that homes in the U.S. sold for a median price of $410,800 during the 2025 second quarter — down from a record of $442,600 in late 2022 but still much higher than the historical average.
GOBankingRates reveal how much mortgage interest you’ll pay in 15 cities — and whether buying a home in these popular spots are still worth it.
Ballooning Interest Payments
The combination of pricey housing and high mortgage rates means some homeowners will spend a lot more in mortgage interest than most Americans pay for a single home.
A recent study from JW Surety Bonds found that homeowners in major U.S. cities will spend an average of nearly $490,000 on interest over the lifetime of a 30-year loan. That number was based on a mortgage interest rate of 6.89%.
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For its study, JW Surety Bonds collected data from Freddie Mac and Zillow and analyzed historical mortgage interest rates and median home values across the top 50 most populous U.S. cities. Researchers also surveyed 970 U.S. adults to get their pulse on the current housing market.
Nearly one-quarter (23%) or potential first-time homebuyers said the most they would be willing to pay in lifetime interest is $200,000 to $300,000. That’s not only much less than what the average buyer would pay under current conditions — it doesn’t even come close to what homeowners in some cities face.
These Cities Have the Highest and Lowest Interest Payments
Homeowners in the priciest U.S. cities can expect to pay more than $1 million over the course of a 30-year mortgage loan at current rates. Here’s how much you’ll pay in mortgage interest in the 10 most expensive cities for average home prices:
- San Jose, California: $1,665,279
- San Francisco, California: $1,424,814
- San Diego, California: $1,124,184
- Los Angeles, California: $1,070,928
- Seattle, Washington: $972,213
- Long Beach, California: $935,920
- New York, New York: $841,886
- Boston, Massachusetts: $831,328
- Washington, DC: $663,344
- Miami, Florida: $646,056
Here are the five cities with the cheapest home prices and lowest interest payments:
- Detroit, Michigan: $83,959
- Memphis, Tennessee: $160,339
- Baltimore, Maryland: $204,197
- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma: $220,772
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin: $228,521
Is Buying a Home Worth It?
Whether you should buy a home right now mainly depends on your financial situation. If you’re financially comfortable, with little debt and enough saved up for a large down payment, there’s no reason you shouldn’t go ahead and buy a home even with mortgage rates at their highest point in decades.
On the other hand, Ramsey Solutions recommends holding off on a new home if any of the following apply to you:
- You have a lot of current debt that needs to be paid down.
- You don’t have a full emergency fund that can cover at least three to six months of typical expenses.
- You haven’t saved enough for a down payment that can cover at least 5% to 10% of the home price for first-time buyers, or 20% of the home price for most others.
- You can’t afford the house payment based on your current income and budget.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Here’s How Much You’ll Pay in Mortgage Interest in These 15 Cities — Is Buying a Home Still Worth It?
