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Veteran investors have always touted that attaining true wealth in real estate is about playing the long game. Sage advice—but the long game doesn’t always have to be that long.
Six Years That Transformed Investors’ Fortunes
Since 2019, investors in some small cities have seen their net worth skyrocket, according to analysis from Realtor.com in its Top 10 Cities Where Home Values Have Boomed report. Investors have almost doubled their money in Knoxville, Tennessee, with 86% appreciation, adding $190,000 to the value of an average home between October 2019 and October 2025, putting it at the top of the list.
Close behind is Fayetteville, Arkansas, with 84.5% appreciation—up more than $195,000—and behind that, Charleston, South Carolina, with 81.3% appreciation, an increase of over $300,000. Also in the top five are Scranton, Pennsylvania, and Syracuse, New York, both of which have enjoyed appreciation of 78%.
Other metros with over 70% appreciation follow a similar pattern: They are in the Northeast or the South. These include:
- Portland, Maine
- Rochester, New York
- New Haven, Connecticut
- Charlotte, North Carolina
- Chattanooga, Tennessee
Room to Grow
If you haven’t invested in these markets, there is apparently still some room to grow. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR) latest quarterly report, home prices increased in 77% of metros in the third quarter of 2025, and are still rising.
“Home sales have struggled to gain traction, but prices continue to rise, contributing to record-high housing wealth,” NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said in the report. “Markets in the supply-constrained Northeast and the more affordable Midwest have generally seen stronger price appreciation.”
Regionally, NAR found that the country is divided into median existing single-family home price changes year over year as follows:
- Northeast: +6%
- Midwest: +4.2%
- South: +0.5%
- West: -0.1%
The NAR report names these 10 large markets with the largest year-over-year median price increases:
- Trenton, New Jersey (+9.9%)
- Lansing-East Lansing, Michigan (+9.8%)
- Nassau County-Suffolk County, New York (+9.4%)
- New Haven-Milford, Connecticut (+9%)
- New York-Jersey City-White Plains, New York-New Jersey (+8.1%)
- Manchester-Nashua, New Hampshire (+8%)
- St. Louis, Missouri-Illinois (+7.9%)
- Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Connecticut (+7.8%)
- Toledo, Ohio (+7.7%)
- Cleveland-Elyria, Ohio (+7.7%)
Winners and Losers
The good news does not translate to the entire country, however. Using data from Zillow, Fortune found that half the country actually saw values decline at some point last year, as affordability—through interest rates, prices, insurance, and income— took a hit.
Treh Manhertz, senior economic researcher at Zillow, said in a statement:
“Homeowners may feel rattled when they see their Zestimate drop, and it’s more common in today’s cooler market environment than in recent years. But relatively few are selling at a loss. Home values surged over the past six years, and the vast majority of homeowners still have significant equity. What we’re seeing now is a normalization, not a crash.”
Weakening house prices led to nearly 85,000 sellers delisting their homes in September, an increase of 28% year over year, as 70% of listings sat for 60+ days and endured multiple price cuts, CNBC reported, citing Redfin data. However, owner woes are likely to be short-lived, according to NAR’s predictions, as the organization foresees a modest 4% uptick in home prices in 2026.
“Next year is really the year that we will see a measurable increase in sales,” NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun said at a conference on Nov. 14. “Home prices nationwide are in no danger of declining.”
Supply, Affordability, and the Advantage for Landlords
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For investors looking to get into the market in 2026, the main issue will be affordability due to limited supply, which in turn will affect cash flow. It’s not just mom-and-pop landlords who are feeling the crunch; large-scale institutional landlords are, too.
“We’ve probably made housing unaffordable for a whole generation of Americans,” Sean Dobson, CEO of Amherst Group, which holds Main Street Renewal under its umbrella, one of the country’s largest institutional landlords, told ResiClub’s Lance Lambert. He cites the massive COVID-19 stimulus package and interest rate hikes as the main drivers limiting supply, and thus, affordability. By Dobson’s estimate, it will likely take 10 or 15 years of steady income growth to restore affordability to equilibrium, as measured against 2006 norms.
“Affordability has probably never been as bad as it is today, the way that we measure it,” Dobson said. “You’ve got to be very, very careful.”
Ironically, this could work in many investors’ favor, provided they have the cash to buy rentals so they can cash flow. Dobson told Fortune that “rental is going to have to become a part of the solution,” giving people a place to live while affordability returns to the real estate market. “In reality, the problem is that homeownership is too difficult to reach, and there aren’t enough homes—across all types and price points—to meet consumer needs,” he added.
An Amherst rep told Fortune that PITI (principal, interest, taxes, and insurance) on a 97% LTV FHA mortgage equates to about 42.9% of median income.
The Next Affordable Cities Most Likely to Boom
For investors looking for the next smart place to put their cash, a few candidates have shown the same early patterns that Knoxville, Fayetteville, and Syracuse have shown.
Columbus, Ohio
National and local forecasts and market commentary note below?average prices and major job growth tied to Intel’s semiconductor “megaproject,” offering attractive rent?to?price ratios.
Indianapolis, Indiana
This is frequently cited in Midwest outlooks such as RealWealth’s medium?term predictions as a fast?growing job market with strong logistics and tech employment, producing stable renter demand and investor?friendly yields.
Grand Rapids, Michigan
The city is identified in long?range housing forecasts (revolving around $1.3 billion in development projects) as an affordable market with a diversified economy and historically steady mid?single?digit appreciation rather than boom?bust swings.
Buffalo, New York
Zillow named this wintry city the hottest major housing market for 2025 and 2024. There’s little to dissuade experts from predicting the city will maintain its allure in 2026, combining improving job trends, below?national average prices, and growing national interest in affordable cities.
Greenville–Spartanburg, South Carolina
The area is cited in regional and national outlooks as a lower?cost alternative to Charleston, with manufacturing and logistics growth, strong in?migration, and relatively little institutional competition.
Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Often mentioned as an affordable market in the Northeast, Scranton-Wilkes-Barre has been booming economically, with single?family rentals still cash flowing at current prices and rents.
Manchester–Nashua, New Hampshire
This metro is highlighted in the joint Realtor.com/Wall Street Journal Emerging Housing Markets Index as a top spillover market for Boston?area buyers, with mid?$500,000s prices, lower taxes, and strong commuter demand. While the sticker price isn’t “affordable” by midwestern standards, it certainly is for New England.
Worcester, Massachusetts-Connecticut
This area is featured in the same emerging markets index, capturing Boston commuters and expanding medical/biotech jobs, with mid?$400,000s to mid?$500,000s pricing that supports steady rent growth. While these prices, like Manchester and Nashua, seem high when compared to Boston and its surrounding areas, they’re a major discount for an area poised for growth.
Final Thoughts
Despite the expected economic ascent of some cities, prospective landlords who plan to buy with mortgages will not see a sudden surge in cash flow, as interest rates are not expected to change much. ResiClub reports that Fannie Mae and the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) both now forecast only small moves in mortgage rates—Fannie Mae sees the 30?year fixed at about 5.9%, and the MBA predicts it closer to 6.4% by late 2026.
So if you plan to leverage, practice careful buying and meticulous management, and knuckle down for the long term, while enjoying tax benefits and appreciation, that seems to be the best playbook to follow.
For other investors who can buy with cash, you can enjoy cash flow, but overall appreciation is not expected to mirror the frenzied post-pandemic years. For flippers, opportunities will remain hard to come by.
So, overall, stick to the old-school rules of real estate investing 101: Buy well, and play the long game.
