Hartford, Conn., is the hottest housing market in the country again. The Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford metro took the No. 1 spot in Realtor.com’s October 2026 Hottest Housing Markets report, released Nov. 13. It is the metro’s first month on top since it held the position from May through July 2026.
The ranking comes in a weak month for the national market. Existing-home sales fell to their slowest pace since 2010 in October. Realtor.com’s report finds buyer demand still piling into a small set of affordable Northeast and Midwest metros, which together make up the entire Top 20.
Hartford tops the hottest housing markets list
Listings in the Hartford metro drew 4.1 times the national average number of viewers per property in October, by far the highest share on the list. Homes there sold in a median 37 days, one day slower than a year earlier but, according to the report, almost a month faster than the national norm. The median listing price was $440,000.
Hartford moved up one spot from September. Realtor.com says the metro has made the Top 20 a total of 57 times and has ranked No. 1 eight times.
“Located in New England, midway between Boston and New York, Hartford is an ideal landing spot for homebuyers looking to take advantage of the relatively low home prices in an otherwise pricey part of the country,” Realtor.com senior economist Hannah Jones wrote in the report.
That price advantage is relative. Hartford’s median listing price is about 6% above the national norm but 12% below the Northeast’s, the report says. Among the 10 hottest markets, only Manchester-Nashua, N.H., at $549,000, carried a higher median list price.
The October Top 10
The 10 hottest metros, per Realtor.com, were:
- Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Conn.: 4.1 times the national viewers per property, 37 median days on market, $440,000 median list price
- Kenosha, Wis.: 2.8 times, 36 days, $385,000
- Lancaster, Pa. (tie): 2.4 times, 30 days, $400,000
- Rochester, N.Y. (tie): 2.5 times, 31 days, $290,000
- Manchester-Nashua, N.H. (tie): 2.8 times, 38 days, $549,000
- Peoria, Ill. (tie): 2.4 times, 36 days, $180,000
- Erie, Pa.: 2.8 times, 38 days, $230,000
- Rockford, Ill. (tie): 2.6 times, 38 days, $269,000
- Waterbury-Shelton, Conn. (tie): 2.8 times, 42 days, $400,000
- Monroe, Mich.: 2.8 times, 39 days, $311,000
The second half of the list was Springfield, Mass.; Canton-Massillon, Ohio; Racine, Wis.; Reading, Pa.; Bloomington, Ill. and New Haven-Milford, Conn. (tied at 15); Akron, Ohio; Springfield, Ill.; Oshkosh-Neenah, Wis.; and Norwich-New London, Conn.
A few metros climbed sharply from a year earlier. Waterbury-Shelton rose 24 spots, Erie 20 and Monroe 19, according to the report’s year-over-year rank comparison. Lancaster had the fastest-selling homes in the Top 20, at a median 30 days on market.
Connecticut has four of the Top 20
The Midwest and Northeast were the only regions in the Top 20 for the 37th straight month, and October’s list split evenly: 10 Midwest markets and 10 Northeast markets. Across the Top 20, listings drew 2.6 times the national average views per property and sold in a median 37 days, which Realtor.com says is more than three weeks faster than the national norm.
Connecticut alone placed four metros: Hartford, Waterbury-Shelton, New Haven-Milford and Norwich-New London, all with median list prices between $400,000 and $460,000. The report says every Northeast market on the list except Manchester-Nashua is priced below the regional norm. Springfield, Mass., and Rochester are below the national norm too.
Realtor.com points to geography as part of the draw. Hartford, New Haven, Waterbury and Springfield sit within roughly an hour’s drive of one another, so shoppers can compare several metros without leaving the region. The report adds that inventory in these markets “remains well below pre-pandemic norms.” All six New England markets on the list drew at least 2.6 times the national average views per property.
That matches what other trackers are showing. Redfin recently counted just three big seller’s markets in the U.S., all in the Northeast.
Big metros improve, from a low base
Large markets moved up an average of six spots from a year earlier, the report says. Jacksonville, Fla., gained the most, climbing 70 places to 189th. San Francisco rose 38 spots, Denver 33, Riverside, Calif., 32 and Sacramento, Calif., 31.
Even after those gains, the five biggest movers ranked between 73rd (San Francisco) and 216th (Denver). Homes in San Francisco sold in a median 38 days, 25 days faster than the national figure by the report’s count. Realtor.com called that an acceleration “likely boosted by the area’s ongoing AI boom.”
Two speeds
The report says buyers and sellers both pulled back in October as higher mortgage rates made conditions “much less friendly.” Much of the country has tilted toward buyers. In the hottest markets, though, scarce inventory still favors sellers, and Realtor.com expects well-priced homes there to keep selling quickly.
The report also warns that high rates leave even buyers in these markets less room to stretch. Sellers who price above what local shoppers can afford “risk watching their listings sit while better-priced homes sell,” it says. Its summary: a market “moving at two speeds,” with affordable metros where demand still outpaces supply and softer markets where buyers hold the leverage.
Realtor.com ranks market hotness on two measures: demand, based on unique views per property on Realtor.com, and pace, based on how many days a listing stays active on the site. Earlier this year, its hottest ZIP codes ranking also leaned on Northeast suburbs. More market coverage is on our Housing Market page.
