Location, location, location. Some parts of the country are nicer than others. Most people don't consider rural areas where the land is flat and mostly cornfields (with a possibility of tornadoes) to be a nice place to live. I live about an hour from the ocean and an hour from year round skiing in the mountains. Lots of hills and forests. I had to pay $250,000 for a 4,000 sq foot home on a wooded acre when I bought it three years ago, but I don't mind spendin that much when I am close into the city and so close to nature.