Sometimes combining data from different surveys produces interesting results. Is there a relationship between the most popular markets in which to relocate and their housing prices? Not always...
According to RELO®, a large network of independent residential real estate firms which has handled over 50,000 relocations from city to city in 2004, the hottest relocation destinations in the country in descending order are:
- Washington, D.C.
- Jupiter, FL
- Atlanta, GA
- Chicago,Il
- Dallas, TX
- Raleigh, NC
- Charlotte, NC
- Houston, TX
- Tampa, FL
- New York, NY
The top five suburban relocation hot spots are, in descending order:
- Fairfax, VA
- Longwood, FL
- Parsippany, NJ
- Bothell, WA
- Overland Park, KS
These findings are based on broker-to-broker referrals sent through RELO's network of 4,700 offices and 110,000 sales associates in 2004.
Interestingly, RELO president Pam O'Connor suggests, "If all of the above areas are too pricey, people might want to job hunt in one of the five most popular up-and-coming relocation cities.
The top five up-and-coming cities are:
- Greensboro, NC
- Wichita, KS
- Grand Rapids, MI
- Virginia Beach, VA
- Albuquerque, NM
RELO's business is comprised of corporate-sponsored transferees as well as "discretionary" moves which can range from individuals searching for a better job market, to second-home buyers and retirees, to those who can work virtually from anywhere and are focused solely on lifestyle, says the company. "Therefore, the popularity of these cities is due to many factors, including affordability, amenities, schools, job market, technology infrastructure, accessibility, and other attractions," says Ms. O'Connor.
All of which leads us to pricing.
In February, 2005, National City Corporation did a study of housing markets based on such market criteria as how much buyers are paying today relative to their incomes versus how much they have paid in the past. This helps determine overall market value for such criteria as location, weather conditions and local amenities.
The study gives the example that in the past Los Angeles residents have historically paid four to six times their income for housing while residents of Kalamazoo paid only twice their income for housing.
Some housing markets are overpriced and some underpriced according to this study, with Chico, CA 43 percent overvalued while Salt Lake City is undervalued by 23 percent.
To take RELO's list and compare it to National City Corporation's list, here's what we get:
- + Washington, D.C. - 10 percent overvalued
- Jupiter, FL - N/A
- - Atlanta, GA - 1 percent undervalued
- + Chicago, Il - 11 percent overvalued
- - Dallas, TX - 11 percent undervalued
- + Raleigh, NC - 2 percent overvalued
- - Charlotte, NC - 6 percent undervalued
- - Houston, TX - 11 percent undervalued
- - Tampa, FL - 1 percent undervalued
- + New York, NY- 16 percent overvalued
It's interesting to note that among the most overvalued relocation destinations were high-transient locations such as Washington, D.C., Chicago, and New York, and that the most popular relocation destinations aren't too overvalued or undervalued, but stick closely to within 11 percent of being over-or under-priced.
