Birmingham's listing prices dropped the most of anything on the tape this month, even as jobs got a little scarcer.

Unemployment crept up almost everywhere in Alabama this month. The state rate went from 3.4% to 3.5%, Birmingham matched it move for move, and Huntsville's rate climbed from 3.0% to 3.1%. None of these are alarming on their own, but three places moving the same direction at once isn't nothing. If you're job hunting in Alabama right now, know the wind's blowing against you a little.

The upside is at the pump and in the listings. Gas fell across the board, AAA's got the state average down to $3.73 from $3.81, and Birmingham and Huntsville both tracked that drop closely. Cheaper gas doesn't fix a softer job market, but it helps the monthly math.

Birmingham's the story for anyone house hunting. The median listing price there dropped 3.3%, from $299,850 down to $289,950, per realtor.com. That's a real move, not noise. Meanwhile Birmingham's typical home value barely budged, up 0.2% to $134,165 on Zillow's index, which tells you this is a listing-price story, not a broad value correction. Rent in Birmingham crept up too, from $1,296 to $1,305.

Huntsville's a quieter mirror image. Rent nudged up slightly to $1,335, home values barely moved, and listing prices were flat at $364,900. The only real news there is the unemployment uptick and the modest gas price relief. If you're comparing the two cities, Birmingham's giving you a price break on listings right now that Huntsville isn't.

Huntsville's unemployment rate rose from 3.0% to 3.1% in September 2026, per BLS.
Birmingham's median listing price fell 3.3% to $289,950 in September 2026, per realtor.com.
Alabama's statewide unemployment rate rose from 3.4% to 3.5% in September 2026, per BLS.
Birmingham's unemployment rate rose from 3.4% to 3.5% in September 2026, per BLS.
Alabama's gas price fell 2.1% to $3.73 a gallon as of November 3, 2026, per AAA.
Birmingham's gas price fell 2.0% to $3.73 a gallon as of November 3, 2026, per AAA.
Alabama's median listing price fell 1.8% to $325,000 in September 2026, per realtor.com.
Huntsville's gas price fell 1.7% to $3.74 a gallon as of November 3, 2026, per AAA.

How this report is built. Every figure comes from a public series read this week: Zillow’s rent and home value indexes, FRED’s listing price series from realtor.com, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ local unemployment rates, and AAA’s state gas averages. The prose is drafted from those readings and checked number by number against them before it publishes. Unemployment moves are shown in percentage points. Nothing here is a forecast.