If treasure maps make your heart jump, these hidden gems are the deals that you have been waiting for. Experts at Realtor.com analyzed the metro areas with the longest number of days on the market, median prices under $310,000, low unemployment, and a high number of restaurants and bars. The result is a list of some of the most overlooked housing markets that can get a homebuyer the most bang for their buck. Want some bonus fun? The list is limited to one metro area per state, so there are even more unknown deals that a savvy buyer can sniff out in their free time.
Everyone loves to discover a real bargain, whether it's a discounted lunch special, a mysteriously cheap laptop, or a home. Especially a home! The sad truth: While we all tend to obsess over the nation's famously desirable, famously overpriced markets—San Francisco and New York and Denver, oh my—they don't exactly offer a lot of unexpectedly affordable housing options. And along with the stratosphere-scraping prices comes crazed competition among buyers. Who needs the drama?
Don't despair! None of this means you have to put your homeownership dreams on hold. In fact, there are places where you can land your ideal home for a low price, where homes don't go off the market in a matter of minutes, and where you can still find plenty of fun things to do. But they just might not be the first places you'd think of.
That's why our trusty data team members put on their headlamps and most durable duds and started digging, working to uncover the most overlooked housing markets—the hidden places where buyers can score a deal on a home and land a good job, all without dying of boredom. After all, seeking out a mellower market can save your sanity and open up options.
