Not All Luxury Is Created Equal: Realtor.com® Maps 7 Levels of the High-End Market, From $680K to $75 Million

Rhea-AI Summary

News Corp (NASDAQ:NWS), via Realtor.com, released its 7 Levels of Luxury report on June 25, 2026. It defines luxury by local price percentiles, not a single $1M cutoff, mapping markets from regional hubs where luxury begins around the high-$600Ks to elite enclaves with entry prices in the tens of millions.

The study finds the national 90th-percentile luxury threshold near $1.28M, with million-dollar listings at 13.8% of active inventory, and details market-by-market 90th, 95th and 99th percentile listing prices and sizes across seven distinct luxury tiers.

News Market Reaction – NWS

-0.67%

-0.67% Session close to close

In the Jun 25 session, NWS declined 0.67%, reflecting a mild negative market reaction.

Data tracked by StockTitan Argus on the day of publication.

Market Context

This announcement maps seven distinct luxury tiers, highlighting how $1.28M nationally contrasts wit...

Analysis

This announcement maps seven distinct luxury tiers, highlighting how $1.28M nationally contrasts with markets from Huntsville to Aspen. For NWS, it extends Realtor.com’s role as a housing data source; key risks remain overall housing affordability and macro-driven media demand.

Key Figures

Median listing price: $430K Luxury threshold: $1.28M High-end luxury threshold: $2.0M +5 more

8 metrics

Median listing price $430K National median listing price, May 2026

Luxury threshold $1.28M National 90th percentile listing price, May 2026

High-end luxury threshold $2.0M National 95th percentile listing price, May 2026

Ultraluxury threshold $5.57M National 99th percentile listing price, May 2026

Million-dollar listing share 13.8% Share of active listings at or above $1M nationally, May 2026

Huntsville luxury entry $759K Huntsville, AL 90th percentile listing price (Level 1)

Aspen luxury entry $24.95M Aspen, CO (81611) 90th percentile listing price (Level 7)

Fisher Island luxury entry $35.60M Fisher Island, FL (33109) 90th percentile listing price (Level 7)

Historical Context

5 past events · Latest: Jun 23 (Neutral)

Pattern 5 events

Date	Event	Sentiment	24h Move	Catalyst
Jun 23	Investor housing report	Neutral	+1.4%	Realtor.com 2025 Investor Report on investor share of U.S. home purchases.
Jun 18	Household formation study	Neutral	-2.9%	Realtor.com analysis of young adults living with parents and housing affordability.
Jun 16	Monthly rent trends	Neutral	+1.0%	Realtor.com data on May 2026 rents and cross‑market rental demand patterns.
Jun 15	State housing scorecards	Neutral	-0.0%	Realtor.com state report cards on homebuilding and affordability disparities.
Jun 11	Listing timing study	Neutral	-2.5%	Realtor.com research on how listing duration affects achieved sale prices.

24h Move is the share-price change in the day after each event; other market factors may also have contributed.

Pattern Detected

Recent Realtor.com data releases for NWS have produced mixed single-day share-price reactions, with both gains and declines following similar housing reports.

Key Terms

90th percentile, 95th percentile, 99th percentile, micropolitan areas, +1 more

5 terms

90th percentile technical

"Luxury segmentation is based on market-specific price percentiles, with the 90th percentile representing entry-level luxury"

The 90th percentile is the value in a set of measurements that is greater than 90% of the observations and lower than the top 10%. For investors it highlights the high end of a distribution — for example, unusually high returns, costs, or prices — helping identify outliers, set conservative targets, or assess upside and tail risk much like looking at the 90th person in a 100-person line to see who’s near the top.

95th percentile technical

"the 95th percentile marking high-end luxury"

The 95th percentile is the value in a range of numbers such that 95% of the observations are equal to or below it and 5% are above it. Think of lining up 100 people by height and picking the person at position 95 — everyone shorter is at or below the 95th percentile. For investors, it highlights where most outcomes cluster and flags the relatively rare, extreme results useful for risk limits, stress testing, performance benchmarks and spotting outliers.

99th percentile technical

"the 99th percentile indicating ultraluxury"

The 99th percentile is the value that separates the top 1% from the rest in a ranked set of data — think of being in the top 1% of a class or finishing a race among the first few. For investors, it highlights extreme outcomes (very high returns, risks, costs, or measurements) and helps spot outliers or tail events that can greatly affect portfolio performance or valuation assumptions.

micropolitan areas technical

"Metropolitan and micropolitan areas are defined using the Office of Management and Budget's OMB-2023 delineations"

A micropolitan area is an official U.S. statistical category for a small urban center—roughly a town of 10,000 to 50,000 people—and the surrounding communities that are economically tied to it. Think of it as a small city plus its suburbs and nearby towns; it matters to investors because these regions show local consumer demand, workforce trends, real estate activity and infrastructure needs that can affect sales, hiring, property values and targeted investment strategies.

omb-2023 delineations technical

"areas are defined using the Office of Management and Budget's OMB-2023 delineations"

OMB-2023 delineations are the Office of Management and Budget’s updated maps and rules that define which counties and cities are grouped together for federal statistics, funding and regulatory purposes (for example, which places count as a single metropolitan area). For investors they matter because those boundaries change how economic data, eligibility for grants or tax programs, and market-size comparisons are reported — like redrawing neighborhood lines can change which homes are counted together and how a neighborhood’s value looks on paper.

AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.

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From regional hubs where luxury starts below $1 million to enclaves where nearly every listing clears that mark, the high-end market defies a single price threshold

AUSTIN, Texas, June 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- As million-dollar price tags have become more common across the country, a new Realtor.com^® report finds that in many markets, $1 million still buys something different: luxury. Realtor.com^®'s 7 Levels of Luxury report maps the high-end market from Huntsville, Ala., where top-tier homes start near $759,000, to Aspen, Colo., where the 90th percentile of listings begins at nearly $25 million, revealing a luxury market that operates less like a single category and more like seven distinct ones.

The national baseline tells part of the story. As of May 2026, it takes roughly $1.28 million to reach the top 10% of homes nationally, up from about $1 million before the pandemic-era price surge. Million-dollar listings now represent 13.8% of all active inventory, compared to a pre-pandemic share of around 9%. But those averages obscure a wide range of what a million dollars actually buys. In markets like Huntsville and Lincoln, Neb., $1 million places a buyer firmly in the luxury tier, in homes averaging more than 4,300 square feet with newer construction and premium finishes. In Los Angeles, that same budget covers less than half the market.

The National Luxury Landscape, May 2026

Median Listing Price	$430K
Luxury Threshold 90th Percentile	$1.28M
High-End Luxury Threshold 95th Percentile	$2.0M
Ultra Luxury Threshold 99th Percentile	$5.57M
Million-Dollar Listing Share	13.8 %
Median Square Feet $1- $2 Million	2,986

"Luxury is not a price point, it's a percentile," said Anthony Smith, Senior Economist at Realtor.com^®. "What defines high-end housing in Huntsville or Lincoln looks nothing like what defines it in Jackson Hole or Malibu. The million-dollar benchmark was never a universal standard, and the data makes that clear."

The seven levels range from regional hubs, where large employers and land availability keep the luxury floor well below the national threshold, to markets that operate beyond the data: exclusive ZIP codes and island communities where the pool of potential buyers numbers in the thousands, not the millions. The table below shows one representative market per level, illustrating approximately how far the entry point to luxury can stretch.

The 7 Levels at a Glance: How the Luxury Entry Point Varies by Market

Level	Description	Representative Market	Median Listing Price	90th Percentile (Luxury Entry)	Million-Dollar Listing Share
1	Regional Hubs	Huntsville, AL	$376K	$759K	3.8 %
2	Emerging Markets	Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, AR	$459K	$1.08M	11.3 %
3	Established Metros	Atlanta-Sandy Springs, GA	$425K	$994K	9.8 %
4	Access Trade-Off & Rapid Growth	Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	$780K	$2.09M	33.4 %
5	Intentional Destinations	Westchester County, NY	$750K	$2.78M	33.9 %
6	Ultraluxury -Pure Luxury	Jackson, WY-ID	$1.72M	$7.32M	66.1 %
7	Elite Ultraluxury	Fisher Island, FL	$10.98M	$35.60M	100.0 %

Within each level, the trade-offs are distinct. Level 1 markets like Huntsville and Lincoln, Neb., keep the luxury floor below $1 million, with newer construction and premium finishes that reflect how far a dollar goes when land isn't scarce.

At Level 2, emerging markets like Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, Ark., are actively building their luxury tiers, with more than 30% year-over-year growth in million-dollar listings. Level 3 established metros like Atlanta offer the widest range: a luxury entry at $994,000 and a media of 4,669 square feet in the $1 million to $2 million range.

"The markets that tend to surprise people are the ones where a million dollars goes furthest," said Anthony Smith, Senior Economist at Realtor.com^®. "In Huntsville or Lincoln, that budget puts you in a 4,000-plus square foot home at the top of the local market. That's not a compromise — that's luxury by any definition."

Level 4 markets like Seattle and Boise, Idaho, reflect lasting pandemic-era demand: Boise is one of only two metros nationally to fully surpass its pre-pandemic luxury peak. Level 5 and 6 markets, including Jackson, Wyo., and Martha's Vineyard, Mass., are defined by geographic constraints, limited buildable land, and in some cases, favorable tax structures that draw ultrahigh-net-worth buyers.

At the top of the framework, Level 7 markets operate in a category of their own, with buyer pools numbering in the thousands globally.

Appendix: The 7 Levels of Luxury — Market-by-Market Breakdown

Area	Geo Type	Median Listing	Million Dollar Listing Share	Million Dollar Listing Count	Median SqFt $1 - $2 Million	90th Percentile Listing Price	95th Percentile Listing Price	99th Percentile Listing Price
Level 1 - Regional Hubs
Huntsville, AL	Metro	$376K	3.8 %	114	4,387	$759K	$946K	$1.47M
Lincoln, NE	Metro	$419K	5.2 %	45	4,601	$800K	$1.00M	$1.83M
Rochester, MN	Metro	$425K	9.2 %	58	4,358	$906K	$1.24M	$2.24M
Chattanooga, TN-GA	Metro	$400K	7.8 %	224	3,700	$875K	$1.30M	$2.62M
Amarillo, TX	Metro	$318K	4.4 %	33	4,120	$749K	$984K	$1.73M
Level 2 - Emerging Markets
Fayetteville-Rogers, AR	Metro	$459K	11.3 %	362	3,678	$1.08M	$1.50M	$2.95M
Durham-Chapel Hill, NC	Metro	$489K	16.1 %	323	3,930	$1.25M	$1.75M	$3.30M
Colorado Springs, CO	Metro	$498K	10.0 %	353	4,469	$998K	$1.34M	$2.38M
Knoxville, TN	Metro	$460K	11.1 %	357	3,886	$1.08M	$1.49M	$3.24M
Savannah, GA	Metro	$410K	10.3 %	250	3,201	$996K	$1.50M	$3.49M
Level 3 - Established Metros
Atlanta-Sandy Springs, GA	Metro	$425K	9.8 %	2,708	4,669	$994K	$1.45M	$3.20M
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX	Metro	$436K	10.7 %	3,006	4,080	$1.06M	$1.65M	$4.19M
Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ	Metro	$498K	16.5 %	3,215	3,180	$1.45M	$2.50M	$6.56M
Las Vegas-Henderson, NV	Metro	$475K	12.7 %	1,246	3,563	$1.20M	$2.06M	$5.93M
Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL	Metro	$420K	8.4 %	1,121	3,630	$923K	$1.40M	$3.49M
Level 4 - Access Trade-Off & Rapid Growth
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY	Metro	$775K	34.4 %	12,771	1,950	$2.90M	$4.86M	$14.78M
Los Angeles-Long Beach, CA	Metro	$1.10M	53.6 %	9,928	1,966	$4.19M	$7.22M	$21.92M
Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL	Metro	$499K	22.9 %	10,060	2,134	$2.50M	$4.56M	$14.89M
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	Metro	$780K	33.4 %	3,490	2,650	$2.09M	$2.90M	$6.49M
Boise City, ID	Metro	$629K	22.7 %	610	3,220	$1.45M	$1.99M	$3.49M
Level 5 - Intentional Destinations
Key West-Key Largo, FL	Micro	$1.20M	58.2 %	808	1,600	$4.80M	$7.0M	$25.0M
Bridgeport-Stamford-Danbury, CT (Greenwich)	Metro	$847K	42.7 %	603	3,500	$4.2M	$6.86M	$18.88M
Westchester County, NY	County	$750K	33.9 %	521	2,842	$2.78M	$4.09M	$9.02M
Sonoma County, CA	County	$998K	50.0 %	544	2,311	$3.5M	$5.44M	$10.79M
Level 6 - Ultraluxury -Pure Luxury
Hailey, ID	Micro	$1.25M	53.1 %	104	2,154	$8.93M	$13.61M	$22.03M
Jackson, WY-ID	Micro	$1.72M	66.1 %	240	2,246	$7.32M	$13.14M	$37.96M
Santa Barbara County, CA	County	$1.80M	70.2 %	432	2,118	$9.00M	$15.45M	$38.07M
Napa County, CA	County	$1.40M	63.7 %	338	2,100	$5.5M	$8.18M	$18.5M
Vineyard Haven, MA	Micro	$2.50M	90.9 %	170	2,348	$7.95M	$12.71M	$21.75M
Kapaa, HI	Micro	$1.40M	66.4 %	245	1,443	$6.09M	$8.55M	$19.89M
Heber, UT	Micro	$1.45M	63.5 %	813	2,819	$6.25M	$8.70M	$21.22M
Level 7 - Elite Ultraluxury
Aspen, CO (81611)	ZIP	$2.72M	60.1 %	125	1,805	$24.95M	$34.98M	$74.45M
Newport Coast, CA (92657)	ZIP	$12.50M	100.0 %	45	5,145	$46.50M	$63.59M	$66.53M
Fisher Island, FL (33109)	ZIP	$10.98M	100.0 %	44	3,600	$35.60M	$44.10M	$53.32M
Beverly Hills, CA (90210)	ZIP	$9.38M	99.2 %	237	5,390	$29.75M	$38.70M	$78.28M
Bridgehampton, NY (11932)	ZIP	$10.49M	100.0 %	36	5,578	$25.00M	$33.38M	$60.60M
Bel Air, CA (90077)	ZIP	$7.43M	92.4 %	109	5,210	$39.99M	$55.00M	$128.10M
Water Mill, NY (11976)	ZIP	$7.85M	98.7 %	74	6,384	$28.75M	$33.05M	$66.09M
Atherton, CA (94027)	ZIP	$14.80M	100.0 %	13	6,914	$32.35M	$40.10M	$47.76M
Upper West Side, NY (10023)	ZIP	$1.70	66 %	128	1,291	$9.72M	$15.99M	$48.06M
Midtown, NY (10019)	ZIP	$1.65	70 %	96	1,200	$11.40M	$19.40M	$46.50M

Methodology

All data in this report is sourced from Realtor.com^® listing trends as of May 2026, reflecting active inventory of existing homes, including single-family residences, condos, townhomes, row homes, and co-ops. Listings reflect only those provided by MLS platforms to Realtor.com^® via a listing feed. New-construction listings are excluded unless actively listed on participating MLSs.

Luxury segmentation is based on market-specific price percentiles, with the 90th percentile representing entry-level luxury, the 95th percentile marking high-end luxury, and the 99th percentile indicating ultraluxury. All calculations are based on listing prices, not final sales prices.

Metropolitan and micropolitan areas are defined using the Office of Management and Budget's OMB-2023 delineations, with Claritas 2025 household estimates used for relative comparisons. Where appropriate, we limited analysis to metros or micros with a minimum threshold of active million-dollar listings on average over the past year to ensure meaningful comparisons.

Historical listing trend data extends to July 2016, but year-over-year comparisons in this report use May 2025 as the baseline.

Luxury by the Numbers

90th percentile = Entry-level luxury (top 10% of prices)

95th percentile = High-end luxury

99th percentile = Ultraluxury (often rare or custom properties)

About Realtor.com^®
For over 30 years, Realtor.com^® has connected buyers, sellers, and renters with trusted insights, professional guidance and powerful tools to help them find their perfect home. Recognized as the No. 1 real estate site REALTOR® agents recommend, Realtor.com^® delivers consumer connections and a robust suite of marketing tools to support business growth. Realtor.com^® is operated by News Corp [Nasdaq: NWS, NWSA] [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc.

Media contact: Emily Do, press@realtor.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/not-all-luxury-is-created-equal-realtorcom-maps-7-levels-of-the-high-end-market-from-680k-to-75-million-302809663.html

SOURCE Realtor.com

FAQ

What did News Corp (NWS) announce about Realtor.com luxury housing on June 25, 2026?

News Corp announced a Realtor.com study mapping seven levels of U.S. luxury housing. According to Realtor.com, it uses local price percentiles to define luxury, showing how thresholds and million-dollar listing shares vary widely across metros, counties and elite ZIP codes.

How does Realtor.com define luxury home thresholds in the 2026 NWS report?

Realtor.com defines luxury by listing price percentiles rather than a fixed dollar amount. According to Realtor.com, the 90th percentile marks entry-level luxury, the 95th percentile marks high-end luxury, and the 99th percentile represents ultraluxury, often rare or highly customized properties.

What is the national luxury price threshold in the 2026 Realtor.com report from NWS?

The national entry-level luxury threshold is around $1.28 million as of May 2026. According to Realtor.com, that 90th-percentile price is up from about $1 million pre‑pandemic, while million-dollar listings now account for 13.8% of active U.S. housing inventory.

What are the seven levels of luxury markets in the 2026 Realtor.com study?

The study outlines seven tiers from regional hubs to elite ultraluxury enclaves. According to Realtor.com, categories include Regional Hubs, Emerging Markets, Established Metros, Access Trade-Off & Rapid Growth, Intentional Destinations, Ultraluxury–Pure Luxury, and Elite Ultraluxury ZIP codes like Aspen and Fisher Island.

How do million-dollar listing shares vary by market in the NWS Realtor.com luxury report?

Million-dollar listing shares range from low single digits to essentially all listings, depending on location. According to Realtor.com, places like Huntsville show around 3.8% million-dollar share, while elite ZIP codes such as Fisher Island and Newport Coast reach 100% million-dollar inventory.