San Diego’s market has to be as hot as any of these, and at a much-higher price point!
The national housing market might be in a slump, but some areas are sizzling like a summer heat wave.
For proof, look no further than the Realtor.com® June roundup of the Hottest Housing Markets. This month, the Hartford, CT, metropolitan area tops the list, followed by hottest markets stalwarts Manchester, NH, and Concord, NH.
To make the “hottest” list, a metro area must have a higher number of page views on Realtor.com, and a faster pace of selling, than in other areas of the country.
Four of the 20 hottest markets were in Connecticut in June, including Norwich, New Haven, Bridgeport, and, of course, Hartford. Many folks who moved to Hartford during the COVID-19 pandemic for the cheaper prices are now commuting to their offices in the New York City and Boston areas twice a week, says Hartford-area real estate agent Lisa Barall-Matt, who’s with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices.
House hunters aren’t just drawn to the lower prices, but the lifestyle as well.
“They’re looking for a place to raise families,” she says. “Younger buyers are looking for a place where they can walk to the center and dine outside, meet their friends, have lovely parks to go to. We’ve got beautiful beaches and lakes, all kinds of nice outdoor places.” That includes the Atlantic Ocean and multiple state and national forests and parks, all within an hour’s drive.
Hartford also boasts plenty of employment opportunities, including being the state capital and the unofficial hub of the insurance industry. Companies such as Aetna, The Travelers Companies, and Synchrony Financial all have offices there.
Recently, Barall-Matt says, she has helped buyers relocate from as far away as California, Florida, and Alabama.
One caveat: The number of homes for sale is still very low. So all that demand is making market conditions just as crazy as during the height of the pandemic. Recently, one of her buyers was in a bidding war with 36 other buyers, and lost to a higher bid, despite offering $45,000 over the asking price.
Hartford-area homes spent just 18 days on the market in June, less than half the national median.
When the top 9 are all in New England there is plenty of reason to doubt their methodology. Okay, Rochester NY is New England “adjacent.” That’s the point. These were, for more than half a Century, places to be “from.” Not places to aspire to.