Dive Brief:
- Real estate marketplace Auction.com has released its 2015 Top Single-Family Housing Markets Report ranking the 50 largest markets in the U.S., and metro areas in the Pacific Northwest and Florida landed the top spots. See the full rankings here.
- Auction.com’s top five markets are Seattle; Fort Lauderdale, FL; Orlando, FL; Palm Beach County, FL; and Portland, OR. The markets occupying the last spots on the list are Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Northern New Jersey, St. Louis and, placing dead last, Central New Jersey.
- Auction.com's rankings take into consideration pricing, sales, permit activity, economic growth and population growth. However, population is derived from annual Census data, so the calculations do not account for recent population shifts.
Dive Insight:
The tech sector has played a major role in boosting the Portland and Seattle economies, which, in turn, has created a strong real estate market, according to Auction.com. The strong presence of Florida markets on the list is the result of a population increase and pre-recession level fundamentals with opportunities for growth.
While other markets previously in the top five — like those in Texas — dropped down the rankings due to sinking oil prices, markets like Orlando received an economic boost from the resulting increase in travel, according to Auction.com Executive Vice President Rick Sharga.
"After the volatility of the boom and bust cycle that the housing market went through, we're finally seeing market dynamics that reflect more normal trends," Auction.com Chief Economist Peter Muoio said. "Metros in the top 10 have strong, underlying economic conditions and favorable potential in the coming years, while those closer to the bottom have housing conditions that suffer from a weaker economic outlook."
Auction.com's list signals good news for builders in the Florida and Pacific Northwest regions, as they can capitalize on the strengthening market and will likely see more growth than builders in the underperforming regions.