Rockford Rockets To The Top: Illinois City Surprises As Nation's Hottest Housing Market

Who would have guessed that Rockford, Illinois, is the hottest housing market in the nation?

The Midwestern city is booming with affordable homes, good jobs and a central location, according to The Wall Street Journal and Realtor.com Housing Market Ranking.

The assessment surveyed the 200 largest metropolitan areas, evaluating factors including real estate demand, housing inventory, median days on the market, price trends, property taxes, climate risks, unemployment rate and wages.

Those making the list provide housing options at more affordable rates, with three-quarters of the top 20 markets featuring prices below the national median list price of $424,900.

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"There are places where prices are picking up relatively quickly, demand is higher than we see in other parts of the country and where homes aren't spending long on the market," Realtor.com Senior Economic Research Analyst Hannah Jones said. "They also boast strong economies and a great variety of things to do."

Realtor.com + Wall Street Journal 2024 Housing Market Ranking

Rank	City	Median listing price	Unemployment rate	Population
1	Rockford, Illinois	$235,000	6.5%	333,632
2	Canton, Ohio	$248,000	3.8%	398,627
3	Ann Arbor, Michigan	$525,000	3.3%	369,035
4	Akron, Ohio	$212,500	3.7%	697,935
5	Springfield, Missouri	$340,000	2.8%	493,755
6	Fort Wayne, Indiana	$325,000	3.2%	430,584
7	Manchester-Nashua, New Hampshire	$550,000	2.4%	429,916
8	Columbus, Ohio	$380,000	3.2%	2,191,831
9	Kingsport, Tennessee	$315,000	3.5%	312,330
10	Portland, Maine	$623,000	2.7%	567,323

The Midwest holds more than half of the top 20 markets, including five in Ohio and a few in the Northeast and the South. None of the top markets is in the West.

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"A lot of these areas are suffering from low inventory, so buyers are more likely to see more competition and prices are likely to rise," Jones said. "These are also areas that have lower exposure to extreme climate risks over the next 30 years."

Rockford, about 90 miles northwest of Chicago and 90 miles southwest of Milwaukee, is home to several hospital systems, aerospace industry and manufacturing jobs. But at 6.5%, the city's unemployment rate is higher than the national average of 3.9%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Many homebuyers come to Rockford from Chicago because home prices are about 37.3% cheaper than in the Windy City.

"For the buyers who can work from home several times a week or maybe entirely, they're finding it much more affordable to live in the Rockford area and commute to Chicago," said David Dale Johnson, a real estate agent with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Crosby Starck Real Estate in Rockford.

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