Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commissions or revenue from some articles through the links below.
Every year, Realtor.com releases its list of the hottest zip codes in the United States. This list shows where potential home buyers are looking and where homes are selling the fastest. Realtor.com calculates the list using an algorithm that measures the number of unique visitors per property on Realtor.com and the number of days a listing remains active on Realtor.com. The hottest areas are those that get a lot of visitors and where homes are selling quickly. This year’s list shows that affordability is king.
Now trending:
For the first time since the company created the list in 2017, the same city has taken the top spot. The winner for the second year in a row is 43230, Gahanna, OH. Gahanna is a suburb of Columbus with a population of over 35,000. It was named one of Ohio Magazine’s “Best Hometowns.” Founded in 1849, it recently celebrated its 175th anniversary. It has a high percentage of owner-occupied homes and is affordable. The median list price for a home is $345,000, which is about 11% below the average for the Columbus metropolitan area.
Another report from Realtor.com on the top ten hottest markets puts Columbus at number one. While affordable housing and quality of life are strong drivers for the region, the Silicon Heartland phenomenon is another factor. Companies like Intel, Amazon and Alphabet are investing heavily in the region. Although plans for Intel’s new chip factory in nearby New Albany, OH have been delayed, the region still expects an influx of well-paying jobs.
The rest of the hottest zip code areas are primarily in the Northeast and Midwest, showing that interest remains focused on affordability. Other top cities include Ballwin, MO; Salem, MO; Basking Ridge, NJ; Rochester, NY; Mount Laurel, NJ; Leominster, MA; Westfield, MA; Highland, IN and Macungie, PA. Each of the top 10 has a lower median list price and/or median list price per square foot than surrounding areas. “This year’s hottest zip codes reflect the focus on affordability that homebuyers have placed in recent years amid high housing costs. Concentrated in larger metropolitan areas in the Northeast and Midwest, these top 10 zip codes attract highly qualified homebuyers seeking more space without sacrificing proximity to urban amenities,” says Danielle Hale, chief economist for Realtor.com.
Read more:
The fact that the South and West were not on the list may reflect some cooling in markets that have heated up in recent years. In many of these markets, inventory has increased and days on market have increased. Homes in the hottest zip codes have been on the market for an average of just 13 days. Lower prices in these markets also allowed buyers to put down an average of 16.7% as a down payment in the first half of 2024, compared to the national average of 14.0%.
Overall, home sales are still below average, reflecting a market that is out of reach for many buyers. However, the list of most desirable zip codes reinforces the notion that the Midwest and the more affordable markets in the Northeast can consistently attract buyers. That’s good news for many homeowners in those regions whose homes haven’t appreciated as quickly as in some other coastal and urban areas. However, all that attention can lead to rising prices, so prospective buyers in those zip codes may want to act quickly.
You can benefit from real estate without owning property
The current high-yield environment offers income-seeking investors incredible opportunities to earn huge returns, and you don’t have to own property to do it…
Investment platform Arrived Homes has created a private loan fund that provides access to a pool of short-term residential real estate-backed loans, with a target net annual return of 7 to 9 percent and is paid to investors monthly. And the best part? Unlike other private loan funds, the minimum investment in this fund is only $100.
Don’t miss this opportunity to profit from high-yield investments while rates are high. Check out Benzinga’s favorite high-yield deals.
This article, “You’ve probably never heard of this city, but Realtor.com says it’s the hottest zip code in America,” originally appeared on Benzinga.com
