housing report

Dallas-Fort Worth offers 8th best ‘bang for the buck’ for new homes in U.S.

It really pays to buy a new home in DFW.

Photo by Ariel Skelley/Getty

In today’s home market, buyers are looking to get the most house for the lowest price. It turns out that in this regard, the Dallas-Fort Worth area delivers one of the biggest bangs for the buck.

A new ranking from residential real estate platform Home Bay puts DFW at No. 8 among the country’s 50 biggest metros on the “most bang for the buck” meter, based on the median price per square foot of a new, single-family home. In 2021, the typical 2,145-square-foot new home in the DFW area cost $399,950, or $186 per square foot, according to Home Bay.

“Examining price per square foot is more important than in the past because housing prices are also outpacing income,” Home Bay says.

Two other Texas metros rank ahead of DFW in the “most bang for the buck” category:

No. 3 Houston, with a median price of $167 per square foot for a new 2,185-square-foot new home costing $359,995.
No. 5 San Antonio, with a median price of $172 per square foot for a new 2,036-square-foot home costing $349,900.

Memphis, Tennessee, tops the “most bang for the buck” list, with a median price of $92 per square foot. Across the U.S., the median price per square foot stands at $169.

Also in the Home Bay report, DFW appears at No. 6 for the median size of a new single-family home (2,145 square feet at the end of 2021).

Two other Texas metros make the top 10 in this category: No. 5 Houston (2,158 square feet) and No. 8 Austin (2,100 square feet).

Memphis also leads this list, at 2,630 square feet for the median size of a new single-family home.

Home Bay used data from the U.S. Census Bureau, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Realtor.com to come up with its rankings.

NEW CRUSH

Lauded Texas winemaker uplifts Hill Country town with new vineyard and tasting room

Photo by David Capote

Uplift Vineyard devotes 55 acres to growing grapes.

One of Texas’ most acclaimed winemakers is stomping on new grounds. William Chris Wine Company is opening of a new vineyard and tasting room on a gorgeous 78-acre property in Burnet, about 170 miles (or just over two-and-a-half hours) southwest of Fort Worth.

William Chris founders Chris Brundrett and Andrew Sides purchased the property, formerly named Hoover Valley, in 2021 from a private owner. The rebranded Uplift Vineyard hired the vineyard team and rehabbed the existing structures to offer elevated wine-tasting experiences and host future private events.

Uplift will be William Chris’ first estate wine brand. For those not up on wine-speak, the offerings will use grapes exclusively grown in the vineyard instead of those harvested by outside growers. Winemaker Claire Richardson will head the program, featuring a surfeit of single-varietal wines and proprietary blends.

Fall releases will zero in on hefty sippers like a single variety Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Malbec, as well as a Bordeaux blend. Springtime will lighten up with Italian grapes such as Montepulciano, Aglianico, and Sangiovese.

Eventually, Uplift Vineyard will expand its wine offerings to a medium-body Rhône blend featuring Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvedre and explore white blends and rosés.

“Every bottle of Uplift wine will come from only the best grapes harvested from this spectacular site, situated in the Llano Uplift geological region,” says CEO Bundrett via a release. “We’re looking forward to bringing awareness to this unique location within the Texas Hill Country AVA because the fruit that’s being grown here is just outstanding.”

Guests can enjoy the vintages at the tasting room or via a limited-capacity wine club, the Uplift Viticultural Society. Uplift is in the final stages of filling the first 300 of 1,000 total spots for the ultra-exclusive Founders Club.

Looking forward, Uplift will host onsite cooking demonstrations and full-day experiences that take advantage of the bucolic setting. For now, the tasting room is open for reservations only, Thursdays through Sundays, 11 am-6 pm.

Last fall, William Chris Vineyards came in at No. 56 on the World’s Best Vineyards' list of top wine destinations for 2022. It was the only Texas vineyard on the list and one of only seven wineries from the U.S.

texas wine hill county wine