Trump Says Data Centers Push Up House Prices. What the Figures Show
As hostility toward data centers grows across the country, will they really be able to make homes “more valuable,” as Trump says?
President Donald Trump claimed that data centers near communities increase home values, despite growing opposition to AI data centers. Recent polls indicate that 63% of U.S. voters oppose building AI data centers in or near their communities, up from December 2025. While data centers have the potential to reshape real estate markets, research on their impact is still in its early stages.
A 2023 study by George Mason University's Center for Regional Analysis found a negative correlation between distance to data centers and home prices in Northern Virginia, a hub for data centers. The closer a home was to a data center, the higher its sales price, likely due to strong infrastructure, good transportation links, and plentiful jobs that attract homebuyers.
However, the study only analyzed one market and does not prove causation. Realtors in areas with data centers report mixed impacts, with some property values increasing while others, like Granbury, Texas, experience a 8.2% drop in home prices. The effects of data centers on home prices depend on proximity, with some homeowners concerned about noise, water use, energy consumption, and other issues.
As over 1,500 new data centers are in development nationwide, the impact on U.S. housing markets remains uncertain.
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