The Top 5 Most Booming and 5 Least Active Real Estate Markets in the US

Throughout the pandemic, housing markets in the South, particularly in Florida, saw an influx of residents attracted by a lower cost of living and affordable homes. However, recent data from Bankrate’s 2025 Housing Heat Index indicates a reversal in this trend.

Bankrate’s housing market analyst, Jeff Ostrowski, noted that the Sun Belt is losing its appeal due to declining buyer demand and sellers reducing prices. “Northeasterners are no longer massively migrating to the Sun Belt; that trend has slowed and even reversed,” he stated, pointing out limited inventory in the North leading to higher bidding among buyers.

The Bankrate research team evaluated 212 U.S. metropolitan areas, focusing on factors like year-over-year home value appreciation, employment levels, job growth, population trends, available listings, and average selling times.

The Northeast is now prominently featured at the top of this year’s rankings, contrasting sharply with 2023, where Southern cities dominated. Notably, the New Haven-Milford area in Connecticut climbed to the top five this year from a previous rank of 82nd.

Conversely, Florida now holds four out of the five coldest markets. While home prices are rising nationally, Florida residents are grappling with increasing home insurance and property taxes. Many prospective buyers are opting to wait instead of purchasing homes.

Previously hot markets like North Port-Sarasota-Bradenton in Florida, once in the top five in 2023, have landed in the bottom five this year, as noted by Ostrowski, who observed many unoccupied open houses and lonely listing agents.

Below is a summary of the five hottest and coldest markets in the U.S., based on Bankrate’s data. Median home-sale prices are sourced from Zillow.com, while population estimates derive from the U.S. Census Bureau.