What Makes a Market Hot? Realtor.com Finds Homes in the Most On-Demand Markets Spend Two to Four Weeks Less on Market

Over the last 17 months, only Northeast and Midwest markets have ranked in the top 20 hottest housing markets in the country

AUSTIN, Texas, March 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- While the real estate market nationally has been moving towards a period of moderate demand, the hottest markets in the U.S. buck that trend with low days on market, growing median list prices and a lower share of price reductions. According to the Realtor.com^® February Hottest Markets Report, homes in the hottest markets spent between 33 and 51 days on market, far less than the national average of 66 days, and garnered between 2.0 and 4.2 times the number of viewers compared to the typical U.S. home.

"Key cities in the Midwest and Northeast continue to see more demand, and homes in these cities spend less time on market," said Danielle Hale, chief economist, Realtor.com^®. "Looking at markets by hotness tells us the strength of demand versus supply in each area relative to others and which markets heavily favor sellers. Competitive market conditions that are found in the hottest markets are good for sellers, but can make buying more difficult for hopeful homeowners. However, this month's report shows the willingness of households to seek out affordability. More than half of the hottest markets were priced lower than the national median, suggesting that the possibility of a good deal is a factor keeping these metros in-demand among persistent buyers."

Market Hotness Varies Greatly By Region

Markets in the Northeast and Midwest have dominated the top 20 hottest markets for the last 17 months. Over the past year and a half, markets in the Northeast and Midwest have seen higher demand and consistently lower inventory compared to other markets, which has contributed to their persistence on this ranking.

Although the dominance of the Northeast and Midwest feels long-standing, the hottest markets list was fairly well distributed before and during the early stages of the pandemic. Although historically, the South's generally abundant home supply has kept its hotness tempered.

The West and the South have seen the biggest annual increase in inventory compared to the other regions, with for-sale home options increasing 37.4% and 29.9% year over year, respectively. More homes on the market means slower market pace and less buyer attention per property, cooling the two metrics that measure 'hotness'.

What does this mean for buyers and sellers?

The spring market is set to blossom in the coming weeks and should bring a pop in market activity, much to the delight of buyers and sellers alike. The country's hottest markets still see relatively high demand, but even these bustling markets saw annual price growth soften to 0.9% on average in February, notching the lowest hot market price growth in the data's history as the overall housing market searches for balance.

Though mortgage rates fell for a sixth-consecutive week, they remain in the high-6% range, inspiring little movement from buyers and sellers. New Home Sales and Pending Home Sales, both of which are based on contract signings, fell in January, suggesting that buyers continue to feel the pressure of widespread unaffordability, and may be continuing to wait to get into the market until conditions improve.

Across the U.S. Markets are Cooling and Becoming More Balanced

The largest 40 markets across the U.S. have cooled down by, on average, 10 spots as compared with the same time last year, which is the biggest year-over-year slowdown since March 2022 and the sixth month in a row that large markets have cooled off annually. Despite the cool down, these areas pulled in 14.8% more views per listing than the U.S. average in February, and homes spent 14 fewer days on the market than the U.S. median.

The most improved housing markets were Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, Pa.-N.J.-Del.-Md. (77 spots hotter), New York-Newark-Jersey City, N.Y.-N.J.-Pa. (48 spots hotter), Kansas City, Mo.-Kan. (45 spots hotter), Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, Md. (44 spots hotter), and Indianapolis-Carmel-Anderson, Ind. (21 spots hotter). This month's fastest climbing markets ranked between 58th (Philadelphia) and 206th (New York) on February's list.

Table 1: Large Markets with the Biggest Jumps in Ranking

Table 2: February 2025 - Top 20 Hottest Housing Markets

Methodology

Realtor.com^®'s Market Hotness rankings take into account two aspects of the housing market: 1) market demand, as measured by unique views per property on Realtor.com^®, and 2) the pace of the market as measured by the number of days a listing remains active on Realtor.com^®.

About Realtor.com^®

Realtor.com^® pioneered online real estate and has been at the forefront for over 25 years, connecting buyers, sellers, and renters with trusted insights, professional guidance and powerful tools to help them find their perfect home. Recognized as the No. 1 site trusted by real estate professionals, Realtor.com^® is a valued partner, delivering consumer connections and a robust suite of marketing tools to support business growth. Realtor.com^® is operated by News Corp (NASDAQ:NWS, NWSA]) [ASX: NWS, NWSLV] subsidiary Move, Inc.

Media contact: Mallory Micetich, [email protected]

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SOURCE Realtor.com