Top 20 Real Estate Markets for 2008

With all the negative media attention real estate has- Spokane, WA -- 4.2%
been getting these days, one might assume there- Glen Falls, NY -- 4.0%
weren't any appreciating or growth markets left in- Salt Lake City, UT -- 3.9%
the country. Nothing could be farther from the truth.- Grand Forks, ND -- 3.9%
The problem with the news media is they tend to- San Antonio, TX -- 3.9% When local economic
lump the subject of real estate into one big bucket,factors are strong, such as job growth and positive
possibly because it makes things easier for them.net migration, real estate tends to be resilient to
This generalization glosses over one of the mostbroader economic factors, such as increasing interest
important concepts we teach other investors. That isrates and inflation. Consider these examples:
real estate is driven and affected by local marketSalt Lake City, Utah experienced a median price
factors far more than it is by national or globalincrease of 10.5% by November 2007 over the
factors.previous 12 months. This was largely due to its
Having said that, here are the 20 top real estatepopulation growth.
markets for 2008:Austin-Round Rock, Texas saw home appreciation of
Appreciation Forecast*10% by the third quarter of 2007, and a 29%
- Yakima, WA -- 7.1%increase over 5 years. Their job market picked back
- Honolulu, HI -- 6.8%up over the previous three years.
- Salem, OR -- 6.5%Idaho Falls located in eastern Idaho, close to Jackson
- Maui, HI -- 5.6%(Jackson Hole), WY saw an increase of 12% by the
- Bismarck, ND -- 5.6%third quarter of 2007, and a 50% increase over 5
- Manhattan, NY -- 5.2%years.
- Sun Valley, ID -- 5.1%Grand Junction, located in western Colorado near the
- Biloxi, MS -- 5.1%Utah border had an appreciation rate of 14% by the
- Kauai, HI -- 4.9%third quarter of 2007, and a 66% increase over 5
- Austin, TX -- 4.8%years.
- Grand Junction, CO -- 4.5%The point to remember is that there are always
- Fargo, ND -- 4.5%good investment opportunities regardless of what
- Mobile, AL -- 4.4%you hear in the media or the state our nation's
- McAllen, TX -- 4.3%economy.
- Idaho Falls, ID -- 4.2%* housingpredictor.