North Richland Hills Is Two Housing Markets Sharing One Median Price

In September 2026, the median single-family sale price in North Richland Hills fell to $360,000, down from $400,000 a year earlier. That is a drop of about 10%. In the same month, in the same MetroTex report, the average sale price rose, the median price per square foot rose, homes sold 18 days faster, and sellers kept more of their asking price.

What fell was the median, and in North Richland Hills the median mostly reflects how the month's sales split between the two halves of the city.

One September, Two Directions

Here is the full single-family row for North Richland Hills from the MetroTex/NTREIS city table, September to September.

Six of the nine lines point toward a firmer market, and closed sales were unchanged. The median is one of the two lines that moved the other way. The other is pending sales, which fell from 56 to 45 and are the honest counterweight here. Fewer contracts were signed in September 2026 than a year earlier, and that number deserves watching through the fall.

A median price per square foot that held near $199 while the median sale price fell $40,000 points to one explanation. The homes that sold were smaller or cheaper. They didn't sell for less per foot.

The Median Has Been Bouncing All Along

The Texas A&M Real Estate Research Center publishes a monthly series for the North Richland Hills market area, and it shows how jumpy this number is even in calm conditions. In 2026 the median went from $357,000 in June to $403,733 in July, then to $380,000 in August and $359,500 in September. The 2025 figures swung through a similar range, from a $356,845 low in January to a $407,500 high in March.

The research center's numbers differ a little from MetroTex's because the two cover slightly different geographies. In September 2026 the center counted 68 sales against MetroTex's 61. Both tell the same story on supply compared with a year earlier. In the Texas A&M series, active listings went from 218 in September 2025 to 193 in September 2026, and months of inventory fell from 3.26 to 2.84. Inventory didn't fall in a straight line. Listings climbed from 154 in March 2026 to 202 in July before easing again. The Greater Fort Worth Association of Realtors' third-quarter report puts the September decline in active listings at 11.5%, with 41 days on market.

A median that moves $40,000 or more within a quarter can't support a trend call on its own. The year-over-year drop in listings is a firmer signal.

Why the Number Moves: 76180 and 76182

North Richland Hills sits mostly in two ZIP codes, and they behave like two separate price tiers. The Greater Fort Worth Association of Realtors ZIP detail for September 2026, produced by the Texas A&M center, splits them apart.

76180, the southern half. Year-to-date through September 2026, single-family homes had a median of $350,000 at $191 per square foot. Price per square foot was up 0.8% from the same period last year.

76182, the northern half. Over the same period, the single-family median was $435,500 at $207 per square foot. Price per square foot was down 1.5%.

The two halves are about $85,000 apart at the median, and each has been fairly flat on a per-foot basis all year. Now look at September. In 76180, single-family closings were up 27.3% from the prior September, with 28 sales at a $340,000 median. In 76182 they were down 13.9%, with 31 sales at a $430,000 median. The northern half still closed slightly more homes, but the lower-priced half's share of sales grew sharply from a year earlier. That shift lowered the citywide median even though neither half got much cheaper per foot.

One caveat about the boundaries. These ZIP figures use Census ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, which don't follow city limits exactly. Treat them as a guide to the two halves of town, not a precise survey of the city.

What Each Half Is Built Around

The two price tiers line up with two different sets of landmarks.

The southern half is anchored by the Iron Horse TEXRail station at 6351 Iron Horse Boulevard. Nearby are NRH2O at 9001 Boulevard 26, Medical City North Hills on Booth Calloway Road, and Iron Horse Golf Club on Skylark Circle, all with 76180 addresses. HomeTown, which the North Central Texas Council of Governments describes as a 287-acre mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly community between Mid Cities Boulevard and Highway 26, includes The Lakes at HomeTown and Walker's Creek Park.

New construction in 76180 is mostly townhomes. Through September 2026, the ZIP recorded 27 new-construction townhouse sales year-to-date, up 42.1%, at a $352,350 median. One active example is CB JENI's City Point townhome community, with homes on Grant Avenue and Union Street near City Hall at 4301 City Point Drive. These townhouse sales are tracked separately from the single-family figures above, so they form their own segment.

The northern half's newest story is around Smithfield Station at 6420 Smithfield. According to the Fort Worth Report, Cover2Capital's Wheelhouse project at 6401 Smithfield Road was approved by the City Council in 2023, with 277 apartments, 15 townhomes and 10,000 square feet of retail next to the station. The state accessibility filing lists an estimated completion date of December 30, 2026, which is a projection rather than a confirmed opening. Just up the road, the City Council approved a preliminary plat on October 12, 2026, for Smithfield Terrace, a site of about 7.5 acres at 6821 Smithfield Road. The city's October 15 update does not list a unit count.

Northern NRH's single-family resale prices sit in the $430,000 range, and new development there is clustering around the rail station.

The Appraisal Number Is Stale Too

Buyers who look past the median often turn to the Tarrant Appraisal District value on a listing as a second opinion. In 2026, that number is also unreliable as a price signal.

The Fort Worth Report reported in September that TAD did not reappraise homes this year, so residential values stayed frozen at an earlier, higher market value. The board voted 5-4 to reappraise in 2027, continuing its schedule of reappraising homes in odd-numbered years. Earlier, in May coverage by the same outlet, the chief appraiser estimated that about 190,000 Tarrant County homes would likely have shown a lower market value if they had been reappraised. More than 272,000 homeowners countywide protested their values in 2026, according to TAD estimates.

The city's own figure moves the opposite way. North Richland Hills' October newsletter says overall property values in the city fell 4.7% this year. That total covers every kind of property, not only homes. So a buyer can see a citywide value decline, a frozen residential appraisal and a jumpy sale median, and none of the three describes a particular house on a particular street.

For a buyer, the tax side matters as much as the price. The Texas Comptroller explains that the 10% homestead appraisal cap applies to an owner who qualifies, and it expires on January 1 after that owner no longer qualifies. A seller's capped value is not something a buyer inherits. TAD notes that new homeowners need to file their own homestead exemption application. For context, the city sets its FY2027 rate at $0.555144 per $100 of taxable value and estimates the average homeowner's city portion at about $1,563. The city's share makes up only about 25% of a total property tax bill. This is general information, not tax or legal advice, so confirm how these rules apply to your purchase with a tax professional or the appraisal district.

Reading an NRH Listing With All of This in Mind

For a buyer comparing North Richland Hills with nearby cities, the data points to a few habits.

1. Compare price per square foot within the same ZIP. In September 2026, 76180 ran $191 and 76182 ran $214 for single-family sales. A citywide figure blends the two.
2. Compare inventory and days on market with a year earlier, not with last month's median. Both were more favorable to sellers in September 2026 than in September 2025, even though listings rose and fell along the way.
3. Price a townhome against townhomes. New-construction townhouse sales near City Point and HomeTown are their own segment and shouldn't be compared directly with older detached homes nearby.
4. Keep an eye on pending sales into winter. The drop from 56 to 45 pending in September is the clearest sign of softer demand, and the next few months of reports will show whether it lasts.

FAQ

Did North Richland Hills home prices drop 10% this year? The September 2026 median fell about 10% year over year, but the average price and median price per square foot both rose that month. Year-to-date through September, price per square foot was roughly flat in both main ZIP codes.

Is now a buyer's market in NRH? Supply is tighter than a year ago. Months of inventory were 2.8 in September 2026, down from 3.4 in September 2025, and homes sold faster. Pending sales were lower, so demand has eased somewhat even as supply tightened.

When will Tarrant County appraisal values catch up with the market? TAD's board voted to reappraise residential property in 2027, according to the Fort Worth Report.

Randy White Real Estate Services can pull the recent sales by ZIP and property type on the streets you're considering, so your offer reflects that house and not a citywide average. Let's Connect.