These US cities are thriving for homebuyers and sellers this spring, says new report

Spring is here, and with it comes what's typically considered the peak for the real estate market. Despite this, the market feels a bit more unsteady than usual. However, some areas in the country seem to be thriving quite well and appear to be great spots for either homebuyers or sellers.

Apr 26, 2025 - 20:49
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These US cities are thriving for homebuyers and sellers this spring, says new report

(NEXSTAR) - Spring is here, and with it comes what's typically considered the peak for the real estate market. Despite this, the market feels a bit more unsteady than usual.

However, some areas in the country seem to be thriving quite well and appear to be great spots for either homebuyers or sellers.

According to a new report from Zillow, mortgage rates are the lowest they’ve been this year, and home values aren’t rising rapidly. And there are plenty of options too, with more than 1 million houses for sale nationwide.

With that knowledge, the popular real estate website was able to rank the top five cities for both buyers and sellers.

Some of the strongest buyer markets appear to be in the Southeast, where builders have been able to keep up with demand. Miami was found to be the top city for buyers, thanks in part to homes there taking three times longer to sell than the national average. Meaning buyers can take their time making a decision on which house to buy.

Two other Florida cities were also considered top cities for buyers in the country, with Jacksonville and Tampa being ranked third and fourth, respectively. Both cities have seen buyers getting great deals on homes thanks to sellers in the area taking discounts.

Here are the other cities Zillow found were the best for homebuyers this spring:

  1. Miami
  2. New Orleans
  3. Jacksonville
  4. Tampa
  5. Memphis

On the other side, several cities in the Northeast and Northern California are thriving for sellers, where buyers are competing for the few homes that are available.

Buffalo stands atop the list and is even Zillow's hottest market of 2025. Sellers located there in upstate New York have seen their homes sell in roughly 12 days on average and typically have a bidding war for the house. More than half of all listings there have sold for over the asking price.

Not far behind are two California cities, San Jose and San Francisco. For San Jose, which was ranked as the second-best city for sellers, home values are up 7.6% compared to a year ago, and nearly 60% of homes are selling for more than their list price. Third-ranked San Francisco has similarly seen 44% of all homes selling for more than the asking price.

Check out how the rest of Zillow's rankings ended up here:

  1. Buffalo
  2. San Jose
  3. San Francisco
  4. Hartford
  5. Boston

To read more about how this spring's housing market is shaping up, go to Zillow's website to see the full report.