Where you live can dictate how much you pay for housing. Danielle Hale, chief economist with Realtor.com, joined Cheddar News to discuss where the hottest markets for real estate are and how you can find a home in a current difficult market.

<div class="block">Where you live can dictate how much you pay for housing. Danielle Hale, chief economist with Realtor.com, joined Cheddar News to discuss where the hottest markets for real estate are and how you can find a home in a current difficult market.</div>

Stretching Your Dollar

Stretching Your Dollar: The Hottest Zip Codes Around the U.S.

Where you can live, can dictate how much you pay for housing. So we're getting a closer look at the hottest zip codes in America and joining me now is Daniel Hale, a chief economist at realtor dot com. Danielle, what are the hottest five zip codes in America right now? The hottest five zip codes in America right now are in Gahanna, Ohio 43230, Southington, Connecticut. That's 06489, Ridgewood New Jersey, 07450. Ando Massachusetts 01810 and Nazareth Pennsylvania 18064. Interesting. Ok. So what makes them the hottest? What factors go into that? So we're looking at areas that are getting a lot of, of home buyers checking out homes on realtor dot com. So lots of eyeballs for each home that's for sale and we're also seeing homes in these areas sell relatively quickly. They're not sitting on the market for very long. That's an indication that there are a lot of buyers, not quite as much supply to keep up with those buyers. So those real estate markets are really competitive. It is interesting that many of them in fact, are suburbs. Why do you think that is? Yeah, so we're seeing two big trends in the data this year. Not surprising. The first one with mortgage rates, you know, at multi decade highs is that affordability is really important. The other trend that we're seeing is that close in suburbs that might not necessarily be affordable, but for a large space, good value, perhaps a better commute than in further out areas are also getting attention. So buyers are looking for affordability or really good value in the housing market right now. What should you consider when thinking about switching a zip code? Yeah, so it may be a good decision. It may not be a good decision. Every household is going to approach this differently. If you're looking for more space, sometimes you have to go to a different area to find it. And that's one thing that we're seeing a lot of these suburban zip codes that are on our how to zip codes list are attracting a lot of buyers from nearby downtowns or further out areas who are trying to get closer in. Um the other thing that we're seeing that affordability trends to some markets, people are, you know, ready to buy a home. It's hard to do now because mortgage rates and prices are high, they're looking for areas where their dollar can really stretch further. So if those are your concerns, it might be the right time to switch. Ok. So let's say you are looking at a home in one of these in demand areas, how can you stretch your dollar? What are some tips if you decide to make that plunge? So it is a hard thing to stretch your dollar in these markets. But part of the reason that they're so appealing and so competitive is because they offer good value for your dollar. So you can be confident that you're getting good value. The key thing I think is to make sure that you're prepared to be competitive because there are a lot of buyers, not quite as many homes for sale. So you want to be really prepared, know what you want to have, know what you're willing to live without and make sure you're really honed in on your budget. Know what you can afford, know what happens if mortgage rates fluctuate a bit, if they go a little higher or go a little lower. What does that mean for your bottom line and be prepared to move quickly? All right, Danielle Hale. Thank you so much for joining from real dot com.