Rockford is America’s top real estate market in Wall Street Journal report

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — According to a new ranking by the Wall Street Journal and Realtor.com, Rockford has become America’s top housing market, a dramatic change from 10 years ago.

According to the Wall Street Journal report , the city’s housing market is hot due to a lack of inventory, with older homeowners reluctant to sell in a time with high-interest rates and soaring house prices.

According to real-estate agent Dianne Parvin, in March there were only 230 active listings.

The median listing price for a Rockford home shot up to $235,000 in March, 51.7% higher than a year prior, the largest gain of any metro area in the U.S.

Still, Rockford home prices are less than the median price of a house in the Midwest, which sits at $250,000, making the area affordable to out-of-area buyers.

The national median listing price is $424,900, according to the report.

In 2013, one-third of Rockford’s mortgages were underwater, worth less than what was owed on them.

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