Housing Costs In The Pacific Northwest Are Rising Faster Than Wages

Housing costs are rising faster than the pace of the growth in household incomes throughout the country, but the disparity is very prevalent in the Pacific Northwest. The numbers suggest people are fleeing some parts of the country for others.

Financial services company WalletHub has created a comparison that shows where home prices have outpaced earnings the most since 1990 and the growing affordability challenge for homebuyers.

Wenatche is among the 7 metro markets in Eastern Washington on the list where housing costs are outpacing wage growth the most.

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NW Cities Where Housing Prices Increased Faster Than Incomes Image: WalletHub

The study reveals only two of the 30 housing markets with the most significant disparity in the last 35 years are not in the western half of the U.S. The highest of those, Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Florida, was ranked 10th, behind markets in Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and four Washington cities.

About a fourth (7 of 30 cities) of the list are Washington Metro markets, with Wenatchee ranked at #20

The Pacific Appraisal Associates' latest Real Estate Snapshot report (Aug/2026) shows the year-to-date (YTD) median sales price of $525K in the Wenatchee area is up 5% from 2025 YTD

The quarterly reports show the YTD median sales price in Cashmere, WA, is $559K and $713K in Leavenworth.