People seem to be leaving more than their hearts in San Francisco—the Bay Area metro topped Realtor.com’s list of October’s Hottest Housing Market.
In holding the top berth for the second consecutive month, San Francisco outranked Denver (which was in third place in September) and Vallejo, Calif. (which held second place ranking last month). There was no surprise that California dominated the list’s top 20 rankings (with 11 metros on the list), but the real surprise was the massive leap by Boston from twenty-fifth place in September to eighth place this month.
Realtor.com also reported that the median list price of $250,000 this month was the same as last month, but was eight percent higher year-over-year and a new record for October.
“We are seeing evidence of stronger-than-normal demand this off-season, as buyers remain eager to make purchases,” says Jonathan Smoke, chief economist at Realtor.com. “As a result, the number of homes for sale declined more in October than at any other point this summer, and left us with 11 percent fewer active listings than last October. That’s the biggest monthly inventory decline since July 2015.”
And speaking of hot markets, Zillow has determined that Nashville and Raleigh, N.C., were the most likely metro areas to attract renters seeking to move. The average renter spends 10.4 weeks searching for a home, according to the Zillow Group Report on Consumer Housing Trends, with those earning over $75,000 securing a place in fewer than 10 weeks on average. However, those earning under $25,000 take nearly 12 weeks on average to find a new rental.
San Jose was named by Zillow as the metro area where most renters are eager to move from, followed in ranking by New Orleans and Hartford, Conn. Oddly, San Jose ranked third as the metro that most renters want relocate.
