10 Hottest Neighborhoods for Homebuyers in 2020: Redfin

Homebuyers looking for affordable single-family homes are migrating to the southeast U.S., according to a new report from Redfin, a technology-powered real estate brokerage.

Redfin developed its 2020 watch list of the country’s hottest neighborhoods by identifying those with the greatest year-over-year growth in listing pageviews on the firm’s website and by asking agents which areas were experiencing rising homebuyer interest.

To make this year’s list, neighborhoods had to have had at least 50 listings in both 2018 and 2019, and 20 median views per listing.

“The affordability crisis has caused people seeking single-family homes to search in areas they may not have considered before,” Redfin’s chief economist Daryl Fairweather said in a statement.

“Homebuyers continue to be priced out of Washington, D.C., and New York, so you’re seeing a lot of northerners moving to the southeast, but even people from as far away as California are migrating there.”

Nationally, the housing market “very hot,” according to the real estate website Zillow. The median home value is $244,054, up 3.7% over the past year, and expected to rise 2.8% within the next year, according to the site.

Fairweather said that because of improvement in the overall U.S. economy, people feel more comfortable leaving the biggest job centers for small ones. Another attraction: The southeast is becoming more metropolitan, with new restaurants and amenities that cater to younger people, she said.

The report noted that corporations are also hanging out their shingles in the region. For instance, money manager BlackRock is building an innovation hub in Atlanta, with plans to employ 1,000 people there by 2024.

In the Carolinas, the report said, Microsoft is spending $23 million to expand its campus in Charlotte, and a new Volvo plant is adding thousands of jobs in Charleston. According to Fairweather, these two cities are expected to lead the nation in home-price gains this year.

See the gallery for Redfin’s top 10 neighborhoods to keep an eye on in 2020.

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