Photo: Renelibrary · CC BY-SA 4.0Measured against area pay, Ferris costs less to live in than 54% of U.S. towns
It ranks #188 of 642 in Texas for affordability. Down 0.6% in a year, close to the Texas typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX metro area ($90K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
Only 4 sales in May 2026: in a market this size, monthly medians swing a lot, so the typical value is the steadier guide.
The grade compares costs with what households across the Dallas metro earn ($90K, Census 2020–24). The typical home costs 2.9 years of metro income, and 38% of renters pay 30% or more of income for housing.
In dollars
- $289Ktypical home, 2% below the Texas typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $1,550a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 103prices across the Dallas metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 118)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 2.9 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$90K, Dallas-area income
- 17%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 38%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across Texas: 52%Census 2020–24
- 17%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
The short version on homes in Ferris
Building at 8 times the Texas pace
Builders were permitted 208 new homes in 2025: 64 per 1,000 residents, against 8.1 across Texas. That’s 957 in the past 10 years. New homes ↓
Prices are 9% below their 2022 peak
The typical Ferris home peaked at $316K in August 2022 and is worth about $289K now. Texas as a whole is 6% off its own peak. Over five years, Ferris is still up 5%. Price trend ↓
A burst of building in 2023
Ferris permitted 302 new homes in 2023, against about 73 in a typical year of the past decade. 2025 came in at 208. New homes ↓
Written from the data on this page. Home values are the Zillow Home Value Index, through September 2026; permits are Census figures through 2025; incomes, rents paid, taxes and ownership come from the Census American Community Survey.
What’s behind Ferris’ grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Ferris is more affordable than 54% of U.S. towns, #188 of 642 in Texas. Property tax pulls the grade down most; home prices hold it up.
Values have lagged Texas: the typical Ferris home is up 5.0% in five years, against 10.1% statewide (Zillow).
Up 5% in five years
Slower than Texas (10.1%).
Show as a table
| January | Ferris | Texas |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $156,000 | $188,000 |
| 2018 | $183,000 | $200,000 |
| 2019 | $210,000 | $212,000 |
| 2020 | $222,000 | $221,000 |
| 2021 | $250,000 | $240,000 |
| 2022 | $289,000 | $284,000 |
| 2023 | $303,000 | $310,000 |
| 2024 | $296,000 | $308,000 |
| 2025 | $296,000 | $308,000 |
| 2026 | $294,000 | $300,000 |
| September 2026 | $289,000 | $296,000 |
A typical Ferris home worth $147K in October 2016 is worth about $289K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
A typical home costs 2.9 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Ferris’s own median, or type yours.
That covers a typical Ferris home, with $41K to spare.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,550 a month here, $290 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Ferris’s typical property tax (1.34% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,550
Renters already here pay a median of $1,295, so moving in tends to cost more than staying put.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Dallas, TX HUD Metro FMR Area): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
208 new homes permitted in 2025
Builders were permitted 208 new homes in Ferris in 2025, all single-family houses, worth about $61.6 million to build. That's 64 per 1,000 residents, faster than across Texas (8.1). Over the past 10 years, Ferris has permitted 957 homes in all.
Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses, Ferris gained 352 residents while 222 new homes were permitted: about 1.6 new residents per new home, fewer than across Texas (2.6): building outpaced growth.
Every year as a table
| Year | New homes | Single-family | 2+ per building | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Jan–Aug) | 28 | 28 | 0 | $8.5 million |
| 2025 | 208 | 208 | 0 | $61.6 million |
| 2024 | 43 | 43 | 0 | $4.8 million |
| 2023 | 302 | 302 | 0 | $74.6 million |
| 2022 | 166 | 166 | 0 | $19 million |
| 2021 | 29 | 29 | 0 | $3.9 million |
| 2020 | 14 | 14 | 0 | $1 million |
| 2019 | 30 | 30 | 0 | $7.1 million |
| 2018 | 67 | 67 | 0 | $10.2 million |
| 2017 | 72 | 72 | 0 | $10.6 million |
| 2016 | 26 | 26 | 0 | $3.7 million |
| 2015 | 8 | 8 | 0 | $1.6 million |
| 2014 | 2 | 2 | 0 | $160,000 |
| 2013 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $303,000 |
| 2012 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 2011 | 5 | 5 | 0 | $664,000 |
| 2010 | 8 | 4 | 4 | $798,000 |
| 2009 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $557,000 |
| 2008 | 4 | 4 | 0 | $599,000 |
| 2007 | 18 | 18 | 0 | $2.9 million |
| 2006 | 42 | 42 | 0 | $5.9 million |
| 2005 | 30 | 30 | 0 | $3 million |
| 2004 | 3 | 3 | 0 | $515,000 |
| 2003 | 12 | 12 | 0 | $1.2 million |
| 2002 | 9 | 9 | 0 | $1.1 million |
| 2001 | 6 | 6 | 0 | $645,000 |
| 2000 | 8 | 6 | 2 | $498,000 |
Homes authorized by building permits, counted in the year the permit was issued. U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey.
Property tax runs below the Texas norm
The median bill is $3,511 (Texas: $4,232), 1.34% of a home’s value a year, against 1.49% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Ferris
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX metro area, or Texas. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 103 | TX 97 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 103 | TX 98 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 91 | TX 88 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 100 | TX 97 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Ferris vs. its neighbors
Of the 3 towns here with a Zillow value, Ferris has the 2nd-lowest.
Questions about the cost of living in Ferris
Is Ferris expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Ferris costs less than 54% of U.S. towns: a B− for cost of living, #188 of 642 in Texas. The typical home costs 2.9 years of the median household income of the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX metro area ($90K).
How much does a house cost in Ferris?
About $289K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, down 0.6% in a year. The Texas typical home is $296K.
What salary do you need to live in Ferris?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $79,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $1,840 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $62,000.
How much is rent in Ferris?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,550 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,295 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Ferris?
The median bill is $3,511 a year, 1.34% of the median home value (Texas: $4,232, 1.49%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Ferris going up?
No: down 0.6% in the past year and 5.0% in five years, against 10.1% across Texas (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Ferris buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, May 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. New homes: U.S. Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.