Housing affordability appears to be on the minds of buyers as smaller cities overtake realtor.com®’s monthly list of top-performing markets in the country. In February, Colorado Springs, Colo., topped the rankings, jumping from the number 10 spot the month prior. Meanwhile, pricier markets in California continued to drop further in the rankings. Realtor.com®’s list is based on areas where time on market is the shortest and where there are the most listing views on its site.
The relatively mild winter this year may have encouraged more buyers to start their house hunts earlier, says Javier Vivas, director of economic research at realtor.com®. “Colorado Springs is a very seasonal market, but the end of February was very warm for them—which is great for the spring homebuying season starting earlier,” he says.
Also, low mortgage rates are enticing buyers. Last week, mortgage rates dropped to the lowest average on record. Freddie Mac reported that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage dipped to a national average of 3.29% for the week ending March 5.
The top 15 hottest housing markets in February were:
- Colorado Springs, Colo.
- Lafayette, Ind.
- Modesto, Calif.
- Rochester, N.Y.
- Sacramento, Calif.
- Vallejo-Fairfield, Calif.
- Yuba City, Calif.
- San Francisco
- Fresno, Calif.
- Stockton-Lodi, Calif.
- Spokane, Wash.
- San Jose, Calif.
- Boston
- Columbus, Ohio
- Dayton, Ohio
Source: “It’s a Spring Shake-Up for the Hottest Real Estate Markets in February 2020,” realtor.com® (March 5, 2020)
