The Hottest Housing Markets Right Now

Homebuyer activity perked up last month returning to its seasonal norm, a drastic difference from one year ago when the market came to a screeching halt. With the spring market here, Realtor.com rounded up the housing markets receiving the most attention and some show buyers are picking up where they left off last year. Realtor.com’s hottest housing market for March was Manchester, NH, which happened to be the top housing market in March 2020. Manchester offers homebuyers nearby beaches, ski areas, and proximity to Boston. Affordability boosted Manchester’s popularity last year, notes Realtor.com, but prices are 8.4% higher now.

"We’re seeing people be a little more adventurous in the pricing," Bedo notes. That's likely because mortgage rates are relatively low, although they have begun to rise in recent weeks and economists predict that the general trend this year will be up. So as long as people have a little more money in their digital wallets, they're willing to put it down on a place where they may be spending more, but they're also getting more in terms of space—a key consideration as the pandemic continues.

So it looks like home buyers should be ready to move fast, before rates go up too much—and hope that more homeowners decide to put their homes on the market to combat a severe shortage of housing inventory that has contributed to bidding wars in some areas.

"It absolutely seems like it’s going to be a competitive season," Bedo says.

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