Buy, buy, buy
Fort Worth is home to one of hottest real estate markets in U.S., report says
Judging by a new ranking, the Fort Worth housing market is hotter than a sweltering summer day. Fort Worth's booming real estate market claimed the No. 3 spot among large U.S. cities — besting all other big Texas cities — on a new list from personal finance website WalletHub.
To determine the best real estate markets in the U.S., WalletHub compared 300 cities of various sizes across 22 key indicators of attractiveness and economic strength for housing markets. The data ranged from appreciation of home prices to local job growth.
Austin ranked eighth among large U.S. cities, with Dallas at No. 17, Arlington at No. 18, San Antonio at No. 36, and Houston at No. 47. El Paso (45) and Corpus Christi (60) also made the large cities list. Only Seattle and Denver beat Fort Worth in the national rankings, respectively.
Among all cities (of every size) in the survey, Dallas suburbs Frisco, McKinney, and Allen claimed the top three spots, and another five DFW cities landed in the top 25.
The Frisco-McKinney-Allen trio were first through third, respectively, in the WalletHub ranking, thanks in great part to their high rankings for affordability and economic strength. Among other DFW cities, Richardson was No. 7, followed by Denton (No. 10), Fort Worth (No. 15), Irving (No. 21), Grand Prairie (No. 39), Garland (No. 41), Plano (No. 44), Dallas (No. 84), Arlington (No. 86), and Mesquite (No. 112).
Bill Head, a spokesman for the MetroTex Association of Realtors, says the housing markets in Frisco, McKinney, Allen, and Richardson — the top four DFW communities on the WalletHub list — all have benefited from growth around State Highway 121 and the Bush Turnpike.
“The affordability of homes in those four areas is key to why they are attractive to homebuyers,” Head says. “That could be said in countless other communities around DFW, but the combination of both business and residential development in those areas cannot be understated.”
Head notes that the North Texas real estate market seems to be stabilizing, coming off the recent highs experienced during the housing boom. For instance, the number of single-family home sales in the region inched up just 2 percent during the first seven months of 2018 compared with the same period in 2017.
“Sales and pricing should start to steady as more homes come on to the market, and buyers will have more selection,” Head says.