Homes for sale in Temple TX.
An honest local agent's guide.

The median sold price in Temple, TX is approximately $275,000 over the last 90 days (Bell County MLS, March 1 – May 25, 2026), based on 380 closed transactions. The mean is $309,000, reflecting a long tail of higher-priced homes. Median price per square foot across Temple and Belton combined is $161. These numbers are roughly 13% below the national median home price.

Approximately 902 active listings in Temple, TX as of May 2026, with another 403 in Belton for a combined Bell County total of around 1,305 active homes. This is higher than 2023-2024 inventory levels, giving buyers meaningful negotiation leverage on most price tiers.

It depends on buyer type. For BSW employees needing under 10 minutes to Main Campus: Wildflower-adjacent (Sugar Brook, Palomonte), Western Hills, and Mesa Ridge. For first-time buyers under $275K: established Temple ISD neighborhoods like Westfield and Belton ISD overlap homes. For new construction at $275-325K: The Groves at Lakewood Ranch and Three Creeks (Belton). For school priority families: Belton ISD overlap zone or pure Belton ISD addresses.

The combined property tax rate in Temple city limits is approximately 2.39% — City of Temple (0.70%) + Bell County (0.31%) + Temple ISD (1.14%) + minor districts including Temple College (0.20%). Belton's combined rate is approximately 2.01%. The highest combined rate in Bell County is the Temple-address-with-Belton-ISD overlap zone at roughly 2.40%. New construction in Belton ETJ MUD districts can exceed 3.0%. Bell CAD mailed 2026 appraisal notices in May 2026.

Yes. 235 of the 380 Temple homes closed in the last 90 days sold under $300,000 (62%). Combined with Belton, the $200K-$275K tier alone represents 30% of all Bell County closings, and the under-$200K tier accounts for 12%. See the dedicated Temple homes under $300K page for the full active list, filterable by school district, square footage, and lot size.

Yes for BSW Health employees, Austin-overflow remote workers seeking 13% lower cost of living, military families using VA loans at Fort Hood-area pay grades, and first-time buyers priced out of Austin or DFW. Less compelling for school-priority buyers who can afford Belton ISD or Salado ISD directly. Median Temple home is $275K vs. a national median above $400K, with comparable square footage.

Temple has cheaper homes (median $275K vs. Belton $320K), proximity to Baylor Scott & White Main Campus, and a higher combined tax rate (~2.39%). Belton has higher-rated schools (Belton ISD B vs. Temple ISD C), lower combined taxes (~2.01% before MUD), and longer commute to BSW. The biggest fact most buyers miss: the western and southwestern parts of Temple actually feed into Belton ISD via the Overlap Zone — letting you get Belton schools with Temple's lower acquisition cost, at the cost of paying both Temple city tax and Belton ISD tax. Full comparison →

Typical closing timelines: 30-45 days for VA or FHA loans, 21-30 days for conventional financing, 14-21 days for cash. New construction varies — 6-12 months from contract to close if buying a to-be-built home, or as short as 30 days if buying a builder-completed spec home with active incentives. Inspection-to-option-period typically runs 7-10 days. Title and appraisal each take 2-3 weeks parallel to underwriting.

Yes. Fort Hood is the closest military installation and most Bell County listings welcome VA financing. VA loans require 0% down with no PMI, and current 2026 conforming VA loan limits accommodate the entire Temple median price range. Many builders also offer rate buydowns to VA buyers in active periods. Verify current VA rates with a Bell County lender; this page lists no lenders by partnership and recommends shopping at least three quotes.

Builder incentives in Temple change weekly and are typically negotiated at offer, not advertised on listings. Common incentive categories include closing-cost credits ($5,000-$15,000), rate buydowns to below-market rates, and free upgrade packages. Active builders in Temple and Belton include Centex, D.R. Horton, Smalley Homes, Kiella Homebuilders, and Flintrock Builders. Always verify incentive specifics directly with the builder before signing, and confirm rate buydowns hold through your closing date, not just the offer date.

Temple ISD received a C (77) overall rating in the most recently published Texas Education Agency accountability ratings, while neighboring Belton ISD earned a B (80) in the same release. Temple ISD passed a $120 million bond in November 2025 funding new facilities; Belton voters rejected three of four bond propositions that same election. The school district overlap zone — Temple city addresses that feed into Belton ISD — lets families capture Belton ISD school zones while buying at Temple's lower prices, at the trade-off of paying combined city and ISD taxes at 2.40%.

Under 10 minutes from most central Temple neighborhoods to BSW Main Campus. Wildflower-adjacent neighborhoods like Sugar Brook and Palomonte run 6-8 minutes. Western Hills is 7-9 minutes. Mesa Ridge and Hillcrest are 8-12 minutes depending on Avenue H traffic at shift change. Belton residents face 12-15 minutes to BSW Main, and Salado runs 25-30 minutes. McLane Children's Hospital is 5-7 minutes from most central Temple addresses.

The best Temple neighborhood depends on buyer type: BSW commuters favor Wildflower-adjacent (Sugar Brook, Palomonte), Western Hills, and Mesa Ridge; school-priority families target the Belton ISD overlap zone. For new construction at $275–325K, look at The Groves at Lakewood Ranch and Three Creeks (Belton). For the lowest entry prices, established Temple ISD neighborhoods on the east side. There's no single "best" — there's a best for your commute, budget, and school priority. See the neighborhood matrix above for the side-by-side, or the Temple map tour for area-level commutes.

No. Prices have softened modestly — Zillow's all-property-type index shows roughly 2–4% year-over-year — but the Bell County MLS closed single-family median is holding near $275,000. Inventory is up versus 2023–2024 and homes take about 77 days to sell, which gives buyers real negotiating leverage. That's a normalizing, buyer-leaning market, not a crash. The lower "down 4.4%" figures circulating online are algorithmic value indexes that blend in cheaper property types, not recorded single-family sale prices.

Safety in Temple varies meaningfully by neighborhood, so a citywide crime-rate average isn't a useful number for a specific home decision. The newer subdivisions on the west and southwest sides (Wildflower-adjacent, Western Hills, Mesa Ridge, the Lakewood Ranch / Three Creeks corridor) generally read as quieter, lower-turnover areas; older central and east-side pockets are more mixed block to block. Rather than rely on a headline statistic, walk the specific street at different times of day, check the most recent local data, and use the Temple map tour for area-level context. Verify current crime data through official sources before deciding.

People move to Temple primarily for Baylor Scott & White Health — the largest hospital-system employer in Bell County — plus a cost of living roughly 13% below the national average, I-35 access without Austin pricing (Temple sits 45 minutes north of Austin), and current buyer leverage from higher inventory. Most 2026 buyers either work at BSW or relocated from a pricier metro and found their housing dollar goes 30–40% further per square foot here than in the Austin metro.