No longer are bustling cities home to the nation's hottest ZIP codes – homebuyers are seeking out quieter suburbs this time around.
In a realtor.com report released Wednesday, five ZIP codes in up-and-coming neighborhoods made their debut, boosted with the help of lower home prices.
Homes located in the ZIP codes on this year's list sell in an average of 17 days, which is an average of 40 days faster than the rest of the country and 20 days faster than their respective metros. Residences in these areas are also viewed online three times more often than homes in the rest of the country, according to the report.
And you can expect to see the housing markets in these ZIPs thrive in the coming months. Realtor.com said the number of households in the 10 hottest ZIPs are expected to grow 4.3% this year, which is faster than the national rate of 1.1%.
Last year, the hottest ZIP codes were located on the outskirts of large, densely populated cities like New York and San Francisco.
Now, house hunters are stretching further and going for cities surrounding Kansas City, Missouri, Boise, Idaho, and Colorado Springs, Colorado. This year's popular ZIP codes were found to have less homes per square mile than last year's.
Realtor.com said that for Millennial homebuyers, these ZIPs offer lower prices of homes, bustling job markets and developing economies – a recipe for attractiveness for the younger set. Other notable features include highly ranked school districts, surrounding industries and accessibility to nearby cities.
"Even though buyers are moving to smaller markets, they are looking to retain an urban lifestyle by living closer to the city center. This tells us that today's homebuyers are trying to have it all – proximity to downtown, room to grow, and affordability – and they're finding it outside of the biggest cities in the U.S.," said Danielle Hale, chief economist for realtor.com. "The average commute distance from this year's hottest 10 ZIPs to their downtown area is nine miles, which is 31% or four miles closer compared to last year's top 10."
Here is realtor.com's list of 2019's hottest ZIP codes:
1) 49505 – Grand Rapids, Michigan
2) 68144 – Omaha, Nebraska
3) 83704 – Boise, Idaho
4) 66203 – Shawnee, Kansas
5) 14609 – Rochester, New York
6) 48154 – Livonia, Michigan
7) 02176 – Melrose, Massachussets
8) 76018 – Arlington, Texas
9) 03045 – Goffstown, New Hampshire
10) 80916 – Colorado Springs, Colorado
