America’s 20 Hottest Markets for Real Estate in September 2017

iStock; realtor.com

We’ve officially closed the books on summer, and the flurry of back-to-school sales and the Facebook posts featuring freshly scrubbed kids awkwardly posing for their big return to classes have finally subsided. So as September draws to a close, we’re taking a look back at this transitional month through the lens of our own realtor.com® data—all the better to take a snapshot of what the housing market across the country is like today.

Turns out, the picture isn’t a pretty one for many home buyers.

As the supply of homes for sale continues to decline year over year, homes are selling ever faster, and for ever-higher prices. For-sale housing inventory fell 1% between August and September, and is down 9% from September 2016 (when there was already a considerable decline in inventory from the year before).

The median time on market for properties on realtor.com in September is 69 days—meaning they’re selling 8 days faster than this time last year. And that’s with a median list price of $274,000, which is 10% higher than one year ago!

In such a tight market, buyers are running out of options, said realtor.com Chief Economist Danielle Hale.

“Days on market and the number of new listings coming to market are lower than we typically see in the fall season, while listing views per property continue to move higher,” she said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the effects of hurricanes Harvey and Irma reversed earlier gains in Miami and Houston’s markets, Hale said: “Views per listing in those markets now show declines from a year ago, while just last month, they showed double-digit increases. Recovery will come to those housing markets, but it will take some time.”

There are quite a few markets, though, where “recovery” is far from being a problem. We took a look at the metro markets where buying and selling activity is still buzzing—where homes are selling fast and buyers are clicking up a storm on online listings. And for the first time since February, our monthly roundup of the hottest markets for real estate has a new champion! Is change in the air?

Well, not so much—it’s more like a minor reshuffle. Vallejo, CA, slid from first to third place, ending its seven-month reign. The new No. 1, San Jose (No. 2 in August), is about 67 miles to the southeast. San Francisco (No. 3 in August), which lies between the two, cemented the Northern California trifecta at No. 3.

(Metro markets can also include nearby towns or cities, so the market of San Jose also comprises Sunnyvale and Santa Clara; and the San Francisco market includes Oakland and Hayward.)

In total, California claimed 11 of the top 20 markets, but cities in eight other states also made a showing: Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Texas, Colorado, Tennessee, Idaho, and Massachusetts. San Diego, CA, moved up four spots to crack the top five. Other top movers in September include Santa Rosa, CA; Boise, ID; Boston, and Los Angeles, moving up seven, six, seven, and eight spots, respectively, since August.

The hot list

Rank (September)	20 Hottest Markets	Rank (August)	Rank Change
1	San Jose, CA	2	1
2	San Francisco, CA	3	1
3	Vallejo, CA	1	-2
4	Fort Wayne, IN	7	3
5	San Diego, CA	9	4
6	Stockton, CA	5	-1
7	Santa Rosa, CA	14	7
8	Sacramento, CA	10	2
9	Modesto, CA	12	3
10	Detroit, MI	4	-6
11	Columbus, OH	8	-3
12	Dallas, TX	11	-1
13	Denver, CO	18	5
14	Oxnard, CA	19	5
15	Fresno, CA	15	0
16	Nashville, TN	20	4
17	Boise-City, ID	23	6
18	Colorado Springs, CO	17	-1
19	Boston, MA	26	7
20	Los Angeles, CA	28	8

The post America’s 20 Hottest Markets for Real Estate in September 2017 appeared first on Real Estate News & Insights | realtor.com®.

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