Question: What housing markets are currently considered to be the hottest? Answer: It depends which data report you consult. And a pair of newly
Realtor.com published its list of Top Metros for New Construction, which involves an analysis of the 100 largest metros based on new-home share of listings, new home price premiums over existing homes, relative climate risk difference, and buyer demand for new construction based on views per listing and median time on market.
According to Realtor.com the top metros where builders are rising to meet local buyer needs for affordable move-in-ready homes are:
- Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers, Arkansas
- Boise City, Idaho
- Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, Tennessee
- McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Texas
- Portland-South Portland, Maine
- Madison, Wisconsin
- Greenville-Anderson-Greer, South Carolina
- Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, Texas
- Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, North Carolina-South Carolina
- Raleigh-Cary, North Carolina
“Our data shows that strong local job markets, builder investment and affordability are converging in these metros to create opportunity,” said Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com. “When communities reduce zoning barriers and support sustainable building practices, it’s a win for affordability, livability and long-term resilience. These are the places helping to close the gap between supply and demand and giving families a shot at the American dream.”
Separately, WalletHub published its report on 2025’s Best Real Estate Markets, which compared 300 cities across 17 key metrics including median home price appreciation, the local economy, job growth and the median credit score.
Under its criteria, WalletHub crowned McKinney, Texas, as the nation’s best real estate market, followed by Cary, North Carolina; Irvine, California; Durham, North Carolina; and Richardson, Texas. The Lone Star State had five cities on the list’s top 10 – in addition to McKinney and Richardson, Frisco placed sixth, Denton placed ninth and Allen placed tenth.
At the other end of the spectrum, three Louisiana cities – New Orleans, Shreveport, and Baton Rouge – occupied the bottom berths of the list.
“Current home prices are extremely important, but there’s much more that you need to look at when determining the health of a city’s real estate market,” said Chip Lupo, WalletHub analyst. “Factors like the cost of living, the potential for the value of homes to increase, the availability of recently built homes and the quality of the city’s job market are all important to consider in conjunction with asking prices and interest rates. The best cities may not always be the cheapest, but they offer excellent housing options and long-term stability.”
