New Hampshire has the hottest markets heading into the homebuying season
Highlights
- Manchester-Nashua, NH reclaimed the top spot after last holding it in October 2020. Concord, NH holds the second-highest spot on the list.
- Spillover and secondary markets continue to dominate the list as buyers prioritize space while remaining close to major hubs.
- The Jacksonville, FL metro area saw the largest increase in its Hotness ranking among larger metros compared to last year.
- Larger metros dropped in the rankings as smaller markets drew in more prospective homebuyers.
New Hampshire showed up in a big way in March, with the Manchester-Nashua and Concord metro areas claiming both first and second hottest markets in the country.
Realtor.com’s Market Hotness rankings take into account two aspects of the housing market: 1) market demand, as measured by unique viewers 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.
The Manchester-Nashua area is no stranger to topping the charts, as it last held the position only six months prior in October. In fact, the Manchester-Nashua area held the top spot for four months last year, despite or perhaps because of the pandemic.
As we’ve seen in other popular housing markets around the country, when one area gains popularity, its neighboring cities become spillover markets that absorb some of the demand. As such, while Manchester has been the more popular market over time, Concord, NH has gradually ridden that wave to now essentially match Manchester’s position.
Around the country, smaller outlying markets continued to rise in the rankings in March. While affordability tends to be a factor in driving homebuyer demand, the hottest markets saw median listing prices 18.9% higher, on average, than the national price in March. This may reflect a willingness of buyers to pursue pricier homes as they aim to lock in favorable mortgage rates, which have been increasing lately and are projected to keep climbing.
The Manchester-Nashua metro area has been a mainstay in the top 20 hottest markets for several years, especially in the warmer months. Half of all homes in Manchester were selling in under 19 days in March — 10 days faster than last year, and 35 days faster than is typical in the rest of the country. Properties in the metro drew in over four times as many unique viewers per property as the typical home around the United States. The median listing price of homes in the Manchester-Nashua area was $420,000 in March, up 8.4% year over year. While this metro is priced above the national median, it’s still an affordable alternative to nearby Boston, where median listing prices were hovering around $700,000 in March. Boston accounts for over 50% of views coming into the Manchester-Nashua metro area (from outside the metro itself).
As a group, Realtor.com’s 20 Hottest Housing Markets received 1.4 to 4.1 times the number of viewers per home for sale compared to the national rate. These markets are seeing homes for sale move 23 to 44 days more quickly than the typical property in the United States overall.
Ten states were represented in the top 20 list, including California, Idaho, Indiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Washington, and Wisconsin. California dominated the hotness list, with six markets represented, followed by Ohio and Wisconsin, each with three markets represented.
March 2021 – Top 20 Hottest Housing Markets
| Metro | Hotness Rank | Hotness Rank YoY | Viewers per property vs US | Median Days on Market | Median Days on Market YoY | Median Listing Price |
| Manchester-Nashua, NH | 1 | 0 | 3.02 | 19 | -50.0% | 420,000 |
| Concord, NH | 2 | 17 | 4.1 | 20 | -58.5% | 362,000 |
| Vallejo-Fairfield, CA | 3 | 2 | 1.83 | 11 | -68.2% | 550,000 |
| Burlington, NC | 4 | 21 | 2.29 | 24 | -50.0% | 302,000 |
| Springfield, OH | 5 | 41 | 3.17 | 26 | -54.0% | 145,000 |
| Lafayette-West Lafayette, IN | 6 | -2 | 2.12 | 26 | -31.1% | 297,000 |
| Yuba City, CA | 7 | 4 | 2.2 | 27 | -34.9% | 427,000 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA | 8 | 4 | 1.68 | 20 | -46.6% | 1,222,000 |
| Stockton-Lodi, CA | 9 | 11 | 1.54 | 17 | -57.1% | 468,000 |
| Spokane-Spokane Valley, WA | 10 | 12 | 1.59 | 19 | -52.5% | 435,000 |
| Janesville-Beloit, WI | 11 | 70 | 2.78 | 30 | -52.8% | 250,000 |
| Modesto, CA | 12 | -5 | 1.54 | 19 | -42.4% | 499,000 |
| Reno, NV | 13 | 47 | 1.39 | 15 | -69.1% | 562,000 |
| Worcester, MA-CT | 14 | 2 | 1.83 | 30 | -29.8% | 395,000 |
| Appleton, WI | 15 | 21 | 2.02 | 31 | -41.4% | 302,000 |
| Coeur d’Alene, ID | 16 | -8 | 1.49 | 23 | -18.2% | 799,000 |
| Madison, WI | 17 | 18 | 1.59 | 28 | -40.4% | 399,000 |
| Eureka-Arcata-Fortuna, CA | 18 | 62 | 1.88 | 31 | -46.1% | 439,000 |
| Columbus, OH | 19 | -13 | 1.54 | 29 | -27.9% | 329,000 |
| Akron, OH | 20 | 25 | 1.73 | 31 | -41.9% | 180,000 |
Most Improved Large Markets
Larger urban markets continued to cool down in the rankings, with the largest 40 markets across the country dropping by 35 spots, on average, since last year.
Of the largest 40 metros, the most improved metros over the past year were sunbelt hot-spots: Jacksonville, FL (+94 spots); Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL (+88 spots); Austin-Round Rock, TX (+88 spots); Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA (+68 spots); and San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX (+27 spots).
On the supply side, the five most-improved markets combined saw inventory move 23 days more quickly than last year. In comparison, the largest 40 markets overall saw properties sell 10 days faster than last year, on average. The time a typical property spent on the market in the most-improved markets is 24 days shorter, on average, compared to the national rate.
Markets Seeing the Largest Jump in Rankings (March 2021)
| Metro | Hotness Rank | Hotness Rank YoY | Viewers per property vs US | Median Days on Market | Median Days on Market YoY | Median Listing Price |
| Jacksonville, FL | 119 | 94 | 0.95 | 37 | -37.1% | 354,000 |
| Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL | 52 | 88 | 1.24 | 33 | -37.5% | 325,000 |
| Austin-Round Rock, TX | 22 | 88 | 1.32 | 18 | -59.8% | 520,000 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA | 105 | 68 | 0.78 | 23 | -54.5% | 507,000 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels, TX | 189 | 27 | 0.73 | 43 | -26.5% | 328,000 |
Methodology
Listing viewers per property indicate relative demand while median days on market indicate relative supply. Top markets are those with strong relative demand and limited relative supply.
Subscribe to our mailing list to receive monthly updates and notifications on the latest data and research.