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Some experts expect the nation’s housing markets to begin a long, grinding climb-out next year from the multi-year inventory dives they’ve been on since 2020, but one Connecticut market is expected to be among the nation’s best.

Realtor.com’s economics team put the Hartford area in the 11th spot on its prediction list of the top housing markets of 2024, alongside communities as diverse as Toledo, Ohio, Los Angeles and Springfield, Massachusetts.

The ranking sorted the nation’s metro areas by a combination of growth in both number of sales and median sale price.

The common themes among the highest-ranked: affordable alternatives in the Northeast and Midwest, stronger sales growth in markets with less remote work and California markets experiencing a bounce-back due to declining interest rates.

Many of the markets in the top 10 were both singled out for offering lower-priced alternatives to nearby major metros and their relatively strong economies, and the analysis noted many Northeast and Midwest metros have higher-than-normal rates of Baby Boomer homeowners who’ve paid off their mortgages, potentially creating a larger pool of potential downsizers who could generate more housing inventory as market conditions loosen.

Realtor.com’s economists predicted that the Hartford area would see the number of homes sold grow 3.1 percent year-over-year in 2024 albeit to a number that will still be substantially below its pre-pandemic average. At the same time, the area will see more than 9 percent home-price growth, the analysis predicted.

The same report predicted Fairfield County’s home sales total would essentially stabilize next year, falling by only 1.3 percent year-over-year, while saying its median sale price will rise 7.2 percent. The report also predicted 3.5 percent growth in both New Haven-area home sales and the area’s median sale price.