The Hottest Real Estate Market in 2025 Might Surprise You
As 2025’s real estate market starts to heat up, Zillow is predicting one city will stand out as this year’s hottest major housing market. While I thought an urban epicenter with a high cost of living like New York City would take the title, a different Empire State city earned the honor: Buffalo is getting the recognition for the second year in a row. That’s proof the market there is incredibly strong, as it’s the first time a market has gotten the title back to back, according to Zillow.
While the city is best known for being the home of the Buffalo Bills and the birthplace of the chicken wing, Buffalo became the booming metropolitan area to move to in 2024 and the demand is still going strong in the new year — and it turns out what defines a “hot” job market is a little more nuanced than I previously expected.
“In chilly Buffalo, competition among buyers will remain hot, with employment growing far faster than builders are adding homes,” Skylar Olsen, Zillow’s chief economist, said in a statement.
Buffalo having the most new jobs per new home permits hints at expected demand, and Zillow forecasted that these career opportunities will draw new residents, which will raise prices as a result of competition. Builders can level some of this housing shortage out as they try to keep up with demand, but the real estate company predicted fierce competition among buyers, while sellers will have their pick.
However, Olsen noted that the overall housing shortage should ease up a bit this year, with more options for sale than in the past few years. However, “both buyers and sellers should expect unpredictable mortgage rates.”
Zillow announced its findings on Jan. 7, and found the country’s 50 most populated urban areas for real estate market desirability by looking into how quickly homes are selling, the growth of home value prices, and how quickly jobs are growing in the area. The real estate company looked at data from November 2021 to November 2024 from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Current Employment Statistics survey to determine the city’s available jobs, compared with the new home building permits ratio.
It then used Zillow data to determine the housing inventory in each metropolitan area, how fast listings moved off the market, housing affordability, and growth of home values. Finally, findings from the American Community Survey helped Zillow forecast changes in owner-occupied households from 2024-2025.
Other cities that were recognized for hot real estate markets were Indianapolis, Providence, Rhode Island; Hartford, Connecticut; and Philadelphia. Zillow also called out these relatively affordable cities’ close proximity to more expensive urban epicenters like New York City as a potential reason for their booming real estate markets.
You can check out Zillow’s full analysis here, as well as the top 10 hottest real estate markets in 2025.
Buffalo, New York
Indianapolis, Indiana
Providence, Rhode Island
Hartford, Connecticut
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
St. Louis, Missouri
Charlotte, North Carolina
Kansas City, Missouri
Richmond, Virginia
Salt Lake City, Utah
Further Reading
I Tried the 90/90 Rule and My Closet Is Now Fully Decluttered
Everything You’ve Ever Wanted To Know About Article’s DTC Furniture
See How a Stager Used Paint to Transform a 1950s Living Room
