The Town Files

The 25 Best Small Towns for First-Time Home Buyers in Tennessee

Ranked on The Town Files lifestyle rankings among 103 towns of 2,500–10,000 people in Tennessee. #1 is Rogersville, TN.

Map of the 25 towns12345678910111213141516171819202122232425
Numbers match the ranking.
The 25 Best Small Towns for First-Time Home Buyers in Tennessee1. Rogersville99th pct2. Harriman97th pct3. Pleasant View95th pct4. Dunlap94th pct5. New Tazewell93rd pct6. Green Hill92nd pct7. Smithville92nd pct8. Oneida91st pct9. Woodbury90th pct10. Eagleton Village89th pct11. Dresden89th pct12. Mascot83rd pct13. Ashland City81st pct14. Huntingdon81st pct15. Centerville80th pct16. Ripley78th pct17. La Follette77th pct18. Covington72nd pct19. Dayton72nd pct20. Rockwood70th pct21. Erwin69th pct22. Jasper68th pct23. Etowah68th pct24. Wildwood Lake67th pct25. Lafayette66th pct
  1. 25Lafayette, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 66% of Tennessee towns

    5,584 people · Macon County · median home $213,900 · income $51,736 · Jan low 25°F · 5 in snow

  2. 24Wildwood Lake, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 67% of Tennessee towns

    3,286 people · Bradley County · median home $231,700 · income $62,722 · Jan low 29°F · 1 in snow

  3. 23Etowah, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 68% of Tennessee towns

    3,603 people · McMinn County · median home $190,800 · income $39,291 · Jan low 28°F · 4 in snow

  4. 22Jasper, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 68% of Tennessee towns

    3,612 people · Marion County · median home $209,000 · income $73,013 · Jan low 29°F · 3 in snow

  5. 21Erwin, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 69% of Tennessee towns

    6,083 people · Unicoi County · median home $180,900 · income $47,487 · Jan low 25°F · 9 in snow

  6. 20Rockwood, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 70% of Tennessee towns

    5,444 people · Roane County · median home $128,700 · income $47,791 · Jan low 28°F · 2 in snow

  7. 19Dayton, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 72% of Tennessee towns

    7,065 people · Rhea County · median home $214,900 · income $49,719 · Jan low 28°F · 2 in snow

  8. 18Covington, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 72% of Tennessee towns

    8,663 people · Tipton County · median home $185,900 · income $42,254 · Jan low 29°F · 2 in snow

  9. 17La Follette, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 77% of Tennessee towns

    7,430 people · Campbell County · median home $138,900 · income $37,581 · Jan low 25°F · 4 in snow

  10. 16Ripley, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 78% of Tennessee towns

    7,800 people · Lauderdale County · median home $154,900 · income $37,432 · Jan low 29°F · 2 in snow

  11. 15Centerville, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 80% of Tennessee towns

    3,532 people · Hickman County · median home $213,400 · income $59,167 · Jan low 28°F · 2 in snow

  12. 14Huntingdon, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 81% of Tennessee towns

    4,439 people · Carroll County · median home $160,500 · income $51,969 · Jan low 28°F · 3 in snow

  13. 13Ashland City, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 81% of Tennessee towns

    5,193 people · Cheatham County · median home $294,100 · income $79,231 · Jan low 27°F · 2 in snow

  14. 12Mascot, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 83% of Tennessee towns

    2,760 people · Knox County · median home $206,000 · income $60,250 · Jan low 27°F · 4 in snow

  15. 11Dresden, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 89% of Tennessee towns

    3,019 people · Weakley County · median home $126,900 · income $51,000 · Jan low 27°F · 0 in snow

  16. 10Eagleton Village, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 89% of Tennessee towns

    5,393 people · Blount County · median home $197,700 · income $71,875 · Jan low 30°F · 5 in snow

  17. 9Woodbury, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 90% of Tennessee towns

    2,703 people · Cannon County · median home $216,400 · income $58,466 · Jan low 27°F · 3 in snow

  18. 8Oneida, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 91% of Tennessee towns

    3,787 people · Scott County · median home $170,600 · income $48,622 · Jan low 25°F · 6 in snow

  19. 7Smithville, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 92% of Tennessee towns

    5,004 people · DeKalb County · median home $194,200 · income $33,192 · Jan low 26°F · 3 in snow

  20. 6Green Hill, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 92% of Tennessee towns

    6,518 people · Wilson County · median home $365,900 · income $91,818 · Jan low 28°F · 5 in snow

  21. 5New Tazewell, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 93% of Tennessee towns

    2,769 people · Claiborne County · median home $183,800 · income $53,567 · Jan low 23°F · 8 in snow

  22. 4Dunlap, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 94% of Tennessee towns

    5,357 people · Sequatchie County · median home $192,100 · income $45,589 · Jan low 32°F · 3 in snow

  23. 3Pleasant View, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 95% of Tennessee towns

    4,807 people · Cheatham County · median home $390,900 · income $109,213 · Jan low 28°F · 3 in snow

  24. 2Harriman, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 97% of Tennessee towns

    5,892 people · Roane County · median home $153,200 · income $44,653 · Jan low 28°F · 2 in snow

  25. 1Rogersville, Tennessee

    Better for first-time buyers than 99% of Tennessee towns

    4,671 people · Hawkins County · median home $192,800 · income $47,500 · Jan low 26°F · 6 in snow

Price vs ranking

Median home value vs ranking, Tennessee towns0255075100$100K$333K$566K$798K$1031KMedian home valuePercentile
Orange squares are the 25 towns on this list; green dots are other towns on The Town Files in Tennessee.

More Tennessee rankings

Same ranking, other places

Methodology. We ranked 103 towns of 2,500–10,000 people in Tennessee (2020 Census population; towns with 2,500+ people have pages so far). Lifestyle measures are The Town Files lifestyle rankings, built from federal demographic, school, crime and housing data (2025), shown as percentiles. Only towns better than 60% of their peers on this measure qualify, so lists can be shorter than 25. Sources: