Buying Before Selling in Memphis
Program and regulatory figures verified September 19, 2026. Details change; confirm your scenario with us.
Memphis pairs the state's lowest home values with one of its highest freeze income limits, which makes the program reach further here than anywhere else in Tennessee.
The numbers
Typical home value of $244,737 for the month ending August 2026, up 0.1% over the year, with a mean 61 days to pending. The timing figure rose eight days year over year, one of the larger moves among the big metros.
At $244,737 Memphis is roughly $207,000 below Nashville's typical value and about $124,000 below the national figure of $368,697. That gap does real work in a buy-before-you-sell plan, because the two-payment test is an absolute-dollar test.
Where the freeze reaches furthest
Shelby County adopted the freeze in 2008 and its 2026 income limit is $63,470, matching Davidson, Knox and the Middle Tennessee counties. But Memphis home values are less than half of Williamson County's market.
The practical effect is that a larger share of Shelby County homeowners clear the income test than in the high-cost counties carrying the same limit. For retirees on fixed incomes in Memphis the program is genuinely accessible rather than theoretical.
Shelby County also has an unusually dense set of municipal freezes layered on top: Memphis itself, plus Arlington, Bartlett, Collierville, Lakeland and Millington all adopted their own. Since cities freeze the city portion of the bill and the county freezes the county portion, a Shelby County owner inside one of those municipalities may be holding two separate freezes. Both reset on a move. See the county and city table.
Loan limits
Shelby County uses the $832,750 national baseline. It is not part of the fourteen-county Nashville block at $1,029,250, despite Memphis being Tennessee's second-largest city, because the designation follows area median prices rather than population.
With a typical value of $244,737 the limit is far from binding for the vast majority of Memphis buyers.
What tends to work here
Lower absolute payments make carrying both mortgages realistic for more households, which is the cheapest structure and the one that records no new lien. At 61 days and lengthening, the overlap is meaningful but not extreme.
Where income is tight, the departing home converting to a rental is worth modelling. Memphis has deep rental demand, and a single-family rental stays at the 25% residential assessment ratio rather than reclassifying. Only two or more rental units move to commercial at 40%. Detail on the rental conversion page.
Note that Shelby County is over 75,000 in population, so Tennessee's Uniform Residential Landlord and Tenant Act does apply here, unlike much of West Tennessee.
Frequently asked questions
How long do homes take to sell in Memphis?
A mean of 61 days to pending for the month ending August 2026, against a US benchmark of 53. That figure rose eight days over the year, one of the larger increases among Tennessee's major metros.
What is the conforming loan limit in Shelby County?
$832,750 for a one-unit property in 2026, the national baseline. Shelby County is not part of the fourteen-county Nashville block at $1,029,250, since the high-cost designation follows area median prices rather than city size.
Does Memphis have a property tax freeze?
Yes, at both levels. Shelby County adopted the freeze in 2008 with a 2026 income limit of $63,470, and the City of Memphis adopted its own, as did Arlington, Bartlett, Collierville, Lakeland and Millington. A county freeze covers the county portion of the bill and a city freeze the city portion.
Are Memphis home values rising?
Essentially flat. The typical home value was $244,737 for the month ending August 2026, up 0.1% over the year. That is the lowest typical value among Tennessee's four large metros and roughly $124,000 below the national figure.
Mike Certo · NMLS #260555 · Cornerstone First Mortgage NMLS #173855 · Equal Housing Lender. Educational content about financing, not a loan commitment and not legal, tax, or real estate advice. Local tax freeze adoption, income limits, and landlord-tenant rules change and depend on your facts; your county trustee, your CPA or a Tennessee attorney, and your real estate agent each handle their own part. Loans are subject to borrower and property qualification.