What Cities Are the Most Home Buyers Moving To? The Answers Will Surprise You

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As the nation’s biggest metros are getting ever more expensive, more Americans dreaming of owning their own homes are being priced out. So where are they going in pursuit of more affordable digs?

The metro with the highest percentage of home buyers moving in during the first quarter of 2017 was—drumroll please—Colorado Springs, CO. The ranking is from a recent report from ATTOM Data Solutions, a housing data firm that is the parent company of RealtyTrac.

ATTOM came up with the list by analyzing mortgage application data from 120 metros with at least 100,000 single-family homes. The firm then used that analysis to create a “moving index.” The list includes home buyers both within the metro moving to a new home and those hailing from other parts of the nation. (Metros typically include the core city as well as smaller cities and nearby suburbs and towns.)

“The overall trend: More people are buying homes in markets that are still relatively affordable and have access to good jobs,” says ATTOM Senior Vice President Daren Blomquist. “The big cities tend to be extremely expensive.”

Colorado Springs is only about an hour outside of Denver, but its homes cost about 54% less than those in Denver. The median list price in Colorado Springs is $325,000 compared with $500,000 in Denver, according to realtor.com® data.

“Our market is hot right now,” says local real estate agent Janet Mall, of Keller Williams Clients Choice. “If the property is priced right, under $300,000 right now, we’ll get multiple offers.”

It’s worth noting that the city has a high concentration of military personnel and their families because of the many military bases in the area.

“It’s just a beautiful place to live,” Mall says. “We have that small-town feel, but we’re a pretty big city.”

Charleston, SC, was the second metro on the list, followed by Raleigh, NC; Tampa, FL; and Washington, DC.  

Where was the lowest percentage of home buyers?

The lowest percentage of home buyers was in San Francisco, where the median list price of a home is a mind-boggling $1.3 million—greatly reducing the pool of buyers.

“It’s hard to get a home in San Francisco,” Blomquist notes.

The other metros that home buyers are flocking away from were Providence, RI; Hartford, CT; Boston; and Rochester, NY.

Where everyone’s buying a second home

Buyers looking for second homes were most likely to move to Florida, with three of the five top metros on the list located in the Sunshine State, according to the ATTOM report.

“That’s where baby boomers and others are buying second homes, possibly in preparation for retirement,” Blomquist says.

Naples, FL, was the top metro on the list, with the highest percentage of home buyers moving in. The median home listing price was $399,000, according to realtor.com data.

“Historically Naples has been very well-known [as a second-home destination] for folks in the later chapters of their lives, particularly retired CEOs and executives,” says local Realtor® Renee Hahn, of Downing-Frye Realty. “But you’re seeing more and more full-time residents coming down due to the businesses that are headquartered here.”

Naples was followed by Cape Coral, FL; Myrtle Beach, SC; Sarasota, FL; and Portland, ME.

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