Homebuyers

What Were the Most Competitive Housing Markets of 2020?

With 2020 now firmly in the rearview, the dust is beginning to settle on one of the craziest years in the history of real estate.

Despite a pandemic raging for much of the year, mortgage rates set continual record lows and homes flew off the shelves quicker than they have in a long time.

As it turns out, there were some housing markets where homes sold much faster and for more money than the rest. Economists at Redfin crunched the numbers and came up with the ten most competitive housing markets of 2020, based on days on the market, the share of home sales sold above the listing price, and other factors.

And they’re probably not the markets you think, either. Six of the top 10 most competitive markets all came from one state: Washington.

According to Redfin, the most competitive housing market of 2020 was Spanaway, Washington, which is located about 45 miles south of Seattle in the Tacoma area.

Per Redfin data, approximately 69% of the homes in Spanaway sold for above their listing price, and the typical home stayed on the market for just five days before selling. Home prices in Spanaway were up 20.8% over 2019 and the supply of homes fell by 32.7%. All in all, that made it the most competitive housing market of 2020.

Two other markets in Washington – Lacey and Tacoma – were the next most competitive markets. According to Redfin, 72% of the homes in Lacey sold above the list price, and the typical home sold in five days as well. In Tacoma, the typical home sold in six days, and 62% of the homes sold for above their listing price.

Here is the full list of the top 10 most competitive markets, per Redfin:

1. Spanaway, Washington
2. Lacey, Washington
3. Tacoma, Washington
4. Wyoming, Michigan
5. Eastmont, Washington
6. Frederickson, Washington
7. Graham, Washington
8. Pleasant Hill, California
9. San Leandro, California
10. South Portland, Maine

Redfin cites the shift to remote working in 2020 as a reason why so many cities in Washington were competitive in 2020, with many tech workers fleeing Seattle for the most financially reasonable housing markets.

According to Redfin, the median sale price in the city of Seattle was $740,000 in November, much higher than $388,500 in Spanaway, $395,000 in Lacey, $392,000 in Tacoma, $415,000 in Frederickson and $425,000 in Graham.

The two California cities that made the list are considered suburbs of Oakland, with those markets likely being popular among people moving away from San Francisco’s exorbitant home prices. Home prices In Pleasant Hill ($841,500) and San Leandro ($765,000) are well above the national median of $336,000, but they’re well below the median San Francisco home price of $1.45 million.