Home prices in Wichita continue to rise — here's where they've really taken off the last 5 years

That Wichita home valuations have boomed in recent years is not new.

But a closer look at the data shows just how pronounced the move to the upside has been — particularly for lower price points.

The attached gallery highlights which Wichita ZIP codes saw the biggest percentage jump in median home values over the last five years.

Leading the way: the 67214 ZIP code in the city’s center, comprising land along, east and west of I-135 just north of Kellogg.

67214 has seen home prices surge 119%, from $33,291 in mid-2018, to $72,843, as of June 30 of this year.

Additional ZIP codes along I-135 round out the top three.

The median home value in the 67211 zip code, just south of 67214, is up 81% to $103,586. Immediately to its south is 67216, which has experienced a 76% jump since 2018 to $121,788.

This latest WBJ housing market breakdown utilizes information from an August analysis by The Business Journals of home price data from Zillow Group Inc. that compared markets by home price momentum at short- and long-term intervals.

While that analysis focused on ZIP codes with median home values of at least $250,000, as of five years ago, and a population of at least 5,000, this look from the WBJ factors in all Wichita ZIP codes regardless of where their home values stood in 2018.

Of the top-10 ZIP codes with the biggest price increases, nine have a median home valuation of less than $200,000.

From ZIP codes with those price points, to those with median prices in the $300,000 to $450,000 range which also made the top 20, one theme is consistent: inventory is low.

According to August’s South Central Kansas MLS data, there is a 1.7 months’ supply of homes in Sedgwick County — much less than the 4-6 months’ supply real estate experts say a balanced market contains.

And levels like those are expected to keep prices moving up, the Wichita State University’s Center for Real Estate highlighted in its recently released 2024 Kansas Housing Markets Forecast.

“Because of the lack of inventory, that’s what continues to drive prices up,” said Stan Longhofer, director of the WSU Center for Real Estate, earlier this month. “It won’t be at the astronomical rates that we saw the last couple of years, but 4% or 5% is a pretty healthy rate for Wichita. That’s not an unreasonable rate of appreciation to expect.”