Hartford, Norwich Lead Nation’s Hottest Housing Markets

By Sam Minton | February 11, 2025 | Reprints | Unlock Link | Print

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The New England housing market is heating up to begin the year, and two of Connecticut’s metro areas are leading the pack.

Realtor.com has released its hottest markets for January 2025 and the region was well represented. The Manchester, New Hampshire area was named the top market as properties didn’t stay on the market for long. Homes stayed on the market for just 46 days compared with the national median of 73 days according to Realtor.com.

“Manchester’s hotness means that high demand is met with low inventory as buyers claim available homes,” Realtor.com senior economic research analyst Hannah Jones said in a statement. “The ongoing demand in the area has prevented inventory from recovering.”

The Hartford and Norwich metros came in second and fourth respectively while Worcester County was ranked fourth, besting Greater Boston which was ranked 15th.

Southern New Hampshire has long been a pressure-release valve for the Greater Boston housing market and a haven for homebuyers willing to trade long commutes for cheap house prices. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Worcester County’s communities also emerged as a target for these same buyers.

And Greater Hartford and Eastern Connecticut have both been singled out in recent years by housing experts as likely to see outsized price appreciation because of their relative affordability.

Particularly in the Northeast, a lack of for-sale inventory remains an issue.

Realtor.com noted that on average there were half as many homes for sale in January among the hottest real estate metros compared with pre-pandemic levels, outpacing the national decline of just under 25 percent. Additionally, the 20 hottest markets saw home stock increase 12.7 percent in January compared with the same period last year according to the website.

“Housing affordability continues to be a challenge for home shoppers as home prices and mortgage rates refuse to budge significantly,” Jones said in a statement. “On the bright side, new construction continues to offer buyers attractive prices and welcomed incentives.”