The 15 Hottest Real Estate Markets in the U.S.

Editor's Note: This story originally appeared on Construction Coverage.

After more than two years of stiff competition and fast-rising prices, the U.S. residential housing market experienced a rapid cooldown throughout the latter half of 2022 and the early months of 2023.

Despite recent signs that market conditions could be heating up again, 2023 marked a notably more subdued year for U.S. real estate compared to the preceding years.

One of the most obvious signs of changing market conditions is home price growth. Similar to home prices, the trajectory of home sales has been a roller coaster in recent years.

Although the national real estate market is showing moderate signs of heating up, some geographies are seeing more activity than others.

To examine these differences, researchers at Construction Coverage developed a composite score using key indicators from Redfin about different local markets.

For a breakdown of the major cities with the hottest markets, see the following analysis. Additionally, more information on how each statistic was computed is available in the methodology section at the end.

1. San Jose, CA

• Composite score: 82.7
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $1,300,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +9.8%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 63.7%
• Median number of days on the market: 13.8
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 103.6%
• Share of listings with price drops: 21.1%

2. Oakland, CA

• Composite score: 73.2
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $825,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +4.1%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 63.7%
• Median number of days on the market: 21.7
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 107.7%
• Share of listings with price drops: 22.4%

3. San Diego, CA

• Composite score: 68.4
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $875,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +11.5%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 45.5%
• Median number of days on the market: 17.4
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 100.4%
• Share of listings with price drops: 24.4%

4. Virginia Beach, VA

• Composite score: 66.8
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $360,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +5.9%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 46.8%
• Median number of days on the market: 21.5
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 100.6%
• Share of listings with price drops: 20.9%

5. Long Beach, CA

• Composite score: 66.4
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $795,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +9.7%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 47.4%
• Median number of days on the market: 36.2
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 100.7%
• Share of listings with price drops: 18.8%

6. Boston, MA

• Composite score: 64.6
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $830,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +16.8%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 34.0%
• Median number of days on the market: 26.1
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 99.7%
• Share of listings with price drops: 19.0%

7. Omaha, NE

• Composite score: 63.1
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $260,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +8.3%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 42.1%
• Median number of days on the market: 10.2
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 100.5%
• Share of listings with price drops: 30.2%

8. Louisville, KY

• Composite score: 61.6
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $380,500
• 1-year change in median sale price: +15.3%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 33.8%
• Median number of days on the market: 33.8
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 99.6%
• Share of listings with price drops: 18.1%

9. Columbus, OH

• Composite score: 61.0
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $265,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +6.0%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 47.3%
• Median number of days on the market: 37.1
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 101.0%
• Share of listings with price drops: 22.1%

10. Sacramento, CA

• Composite score: 59.0
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $455,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +3.4%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 49.9%
• Median number of days on the market: 17.6
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 100.5%
• Share of listings with price drops: 29.9%

11. Minneapolis, MN

• Composite score: 58.6
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $320,650
• 1-year change in median sale price: +7.6%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 43.1%
• Median number of days on the market: 24.7
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 100.6%
• Share of listings with price drops: 27.8%

12. San Francisco, CA

• Composite score:
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $1,177,500
• 1-year change in median sale price: -7.6%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 46.1%
• Median number of days on the market: 33.3
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 102.8%
• Share of listings with price drops: 19.1%

13. Los Angeles, CA

• Composite score: 56.7
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $954,000
• 1-year change in median sale price: +3.7%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 43.8%
• Median number of days on the market: 44.0
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 100.4%
• Share of listings with price drops: 16.5%

14. El Paso, TX

• Composite score: 54.9
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $248,250
• 1-year change in median sale price: +5.6%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 32.7%
• Median number of days on the market: 25.9
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 99.4%
• Share of listings with price drops: 19.3%

15. Milwaukee, WI

• Composite score: 53.4
• Median sale price (Dec. 2023): $175,500
• 1-year change in median sale price: +3.4%
• Share of homes that sold above asking: 46.2%
• Median number of days on the market: 42.0
• Average sale-to-list percentage: 100.3%
• Share of listings with price drops: 21.8%

Methodology

The data used in this analysis is from Redfin’s Data Center. To determine the locations with the hottest real estate markets in 2024, researchers at Construction Coverage created a composite score, equally weighting the following metrics:

• One-year change in median sale price (Dec. 2022–Dec. 2023)
• Share of homes that sold above asking (2023)
• Median number of days on the market (2023)
• Average sale-to-list percentage (2023)
• Share of listings with price drops (2023)

In the event of a tie, the location with the greater one-year change in median sale price was ranked higher.

Researchers also reported the median home sale price from December 2023. Cities were grouped into cohorts based on population size: small (less than 150,000), midsize (150,000–349,999), and large (350,000 or more). Note, locations with insufficient data were excluded for quality purposes.