A new report from Realtor.com examines the U.S. markets that have the “it” factor, as Columbus, Ohio; Knoxville, Tennessee; and Louisville, Kentucky claimed the top three spots in terms of popularity with online searchers over the past year.
“With a mix of affordability and growing inventory, these markets were sought out by online home shoppers, earning them a spot on our Most Popular Markets ranking,” said Realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale. “What’s notable is that these 10 metros are large enough to attract those making the hard decision to move to a new area, but also still generally small and affordable enough to hold onto local home shoppers. With lower housing costs and more homes for sale, these second cities clustered in the South, Midwest, and Northeast, are likely to continue to attract movers from all over.”
Ranking the Top Hot Spots
Earning the top spot, Columbus, Ohio consistently ranked high among Realtor.com hottest housing markets and top emerging housing markets. Driven by its affordability, the Columbus region was found to be particularly attractive to families and young professionals. Over the past 12 months, homes in Columbus attracted 0.9% of online traffic on Realtor.com, with views per property 2.4 times the national level. Moreover, homes in Columbus have garnered nationwide interest, reflected in a regional interest index of 0.5. This interest spans across the Northeast (13.7%), South (15.4%), Midwest (67.3%), and West (3.6%). Among out-of-state shoppers, buyers from New York exhibit the highest interest in Columbus homes, followed by shoppers from Virginia and California.
Columbus was not the only Midwest city to make the list. Detroit, Michigan ranked fourth and was the largest market on Realtor.com’s list, boasting a population of over four million people and offers affordability with a median listing price of $252,000 over the past year.
Coming in second on the list was Knoxville, Tennessee, recognized as a top emerging housing market in both Summer and the Fall of 2023. The market’s housing affordability, high quality of life blending urban and suburban living, growing job opportunities, and numerous outdoor activities make it especially attractive for families.
Ranking third on the list was Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky/Indiana, with a traffic share of 0.5% and 1.5 views per property versus the nationwide average. According to Redfin, as of May 2024, the Louisville, Kentucky housing market found homes selling for around 10.3% more than the previous year. The median sale price was $267,000, and the median price per square foot was $159, which is a 6% increase from 2023. Homes in Louisville typically receive three offers and sell after about 24 days on the market.
The Detroit-Warren-Dearborn, Michigan ranked fourth in the study, as Zillow found that the average Detroit-Warren-Dearborn home value is $256,071, up 5.5% over the past year.
Taking the fifth spot on the list, the Steel City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is a top destination for college graduates embarking on new careers. Compared to other major U.S. cities, Pittsburgh offers a lower cost of living and boasts a diverse and growing economy with strengths in technology, healthcare, education, and finance. The average Pittsburgh home value is $234,530, up 5.8% over the past year, according to Zillow.
The Portland-South Portland, Maine market came in sixth, with 0.4% traffic share and as reported by Redfin, in June 2024, South Portland home prices were down 3.7% compared to last year, while selling for a median price of $515,000. On average, homes in South Portland sell after 14 days on the market compared to seven days last year. There were 30 homes sold in June this year, down from 35 last year.
Meanwhile, in the Sunshine State, the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Florida market ranked seventh, where the median listing price increased by nearly 50% during the past five years (pre-pandemic). Homes in St. Petersburg receive one offer on average and sells in around 34 days. The median sale price of a home in St. Petersburg was $415,000 last month, down 3.5% since last year.
Charleston-North Charleston, South Carolina ranked eighth in Realtor.com’s analysis of the most sought markets, where in June 2024, North Charleston home prices were down 5% compared to last year, selling for a median price of $325,000. On average, homes in North Charleston sell after 52 days on the market compared to 50 days last year. There were 147 homes sold in June this year, down from 171 last year.
The Northeast returned at the ninth spot, as in Hartford-East Hartford-Middletown, Connecticut, as of August 10, 2024, had 137 active home listings and 13 new homes for sale. In July 2024, the median price of a home in East Hartford was $275,000, and homes typically sell after 13 days on the market—up from $266,700 in July 2023, which was an 8.9% increase from the previous year.
Rounding out Realtor.com’s top 10 was Asheville, North Carolina, a popular retirement destination and city that boasts notable cultural attractions and a mild climate. The Asheville housing market is somewhat competitive, as homes in Asheville receive two offers on average and sell in around 47 days. The median sale price of a home in Asheville was $515,000 last month, down 4.6% since last year. The median sale price per square foot in Asheville is $327, down 5.5% since last year.
Report Methodology
This report examined the online views of for-sale listings on the Realtor.com marketplace across metropolitan areas from July 2023 to June 2024. It calculates the online traffic share for each market by comparing the listing views received by that market to the total online views generated on Realtor.com. Views per property (vs. U.S.) is estimated by the count of online views a typical property receives in the specified geography divided by the count of views a typical property receives in the US overall during the same time period. The Regional Traffic Concentration Index is created based on the Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI), ranging from 0 to 1. For each market, Realtor.com creates the Index by calculating traffic share from each region, squaring the traffic share for each region, and adding the results together. While calculating these metrics for all the markets in the U.S, Realtor.com only ranks the top 300 largest metros for the purpose of this research.
