Coldwell Banker Issues Report Ranking Over 2,300 Markets in North America

 PARSIPPANY, N.J. (June 15, 2011)– Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC today released its Home Listing Report (HLR), a snapshot survey of average listing prices for four-bedroom, two-bathroom homes in more than 2,300 North American markets.  Newport Beach, Calif., led the list of most expensive U.S. real estate markets for the second year in a row, with an average home listing price of approximately $2.5 million for property listings meeting the subject home criteria.  The most affordable U.S. market in the report is Niagara Falls, N.Y., which has an average home listing price of approximately $61,000. The dramatic difference of more than $2.4 million between most expensive and most affordable U.S. housing markets is just one of the many findings in this comprehensive market comparison.

The Coldwell Banker Home Listing Report compiles extensive information on real estate data from around the U.S. and Canada for home buyers and sellers.  The Coldwell Banker HLR provides the average home listing price of four-bedroom, two-bathroom properties on coldwellbanker.com that were listed between September 2010 and March 2011 from more than 2,300 North American markets. The U.S. average for the surveyed listings was approximately $293,000.

Markets included in the U.S. report were required to have at least 10 properties fitting the above criteria within the relevant timeframe, and in Canada, at least five properties were required.¹

Newport Beach, known for its picturesque beaches which play backdrop to VIP visitors and residents, tops the list of most expensive U.S. markets for a second straight year, and is almost a million dollars more than the next most expensive market, Pacific Palisades (with an average listing price of $1.6 million).  Niagara Falls, N.Y., the most affordable U.S. market, remains one of the world’s most majestic natural tourist attractions.  Locals are drawn to the area for its booming tourism industry, breathtaking views and accessibility to other areas, including the Greater Golden Horseshoe, Buffalo to the south and Toronto to the north. 

"This year’s home listing report is by far the most in-depth local market source of data that Coldwell Banker has ever released,” said Jim Gillespie, chief executive officer, Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC.  “We’ve included nearly ten times more markets than ever before, which gives us unmatched real estate insight into thousands of North American cities.  For instance, we can see that there are 775 U.S. markets averaging $200,000 or less for these types of aspirational homes.  We know that home buying remains a deeply personal lifestyle decision, and we believe that reports like this, along with trusted real estate agents, will help today’s buyers make smart decisions.”

The Canadian market continues to experience record or near-record housing prices in major markets across the country.  The West coast continues to post some of the country’s highest prices.  Vancouver, BC again earned top spot as Canada’s most expensive city, showing $1.55 million for the subject home.  Also in Western Canada, Alberta’s strong economy and an abundance of Oil Sands jobs continues to fuel housing prices, with ‘boom town’ Fort McMurray leading the province with a price of approximately $652,000.  Moving to the interior, Ontario saw one of the largest price disparities. Oakville, one of Canada’s most affluent communities, located west of Toronto, earned top spot for the province with $624,914, while just a few hundred miles away, Windsor was Canada’s most affordable market at $144,460.  Windsor, located across the border from Detroit, Michigan, has been impacted by auto industry woes, and is now promoting its great value housing to the retirement market.

2011 Coldwell Banker U.S.Home Listing Report – Highlights

America's Most Affordable Markets:In addition to Niagara Falls, the top 10 most affordable real estate markets in the United States are full of fun trivia and charming local facts: 

• Riverdale, Ga. was a historic backdrop to the Civil War, and history buffs can go there to see the Marcus Long House, home to a fallen confederate soldier.
• Coolidge, Ariz. is home to the Casa Grande Ruins National Monument, which was created as the nation’s first archeological reserve in 1892, and declared a National Monument in 1918.
• College Park, Ga. is the hometown to well-known R&B performers Ludacris and Monica.  The world-class Georgia International Conventional Center is located there as well. 
• Detroit, Mich. is the automotive capital of America and the birthplace of Motown.
• Hastings, Fla. is a haven for warm-weather lovers, with an average annual temperature of 69 degrees.
• Cleveland, Ohio, is home to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
• Lithonia, Ga.’s name means “city or town of stone,” and is the heart of the Georgian granite-quarrying and viewing region.
• Trotwood, Ohio is located near Wolf Creek, which is a beautiful fishing destination.
• Sioux City, Iowa is home to many parks, including Stone State Park, a haven for hikers and picnickers.

 Homeownership Affordability: In total, there are 24 U.S. markets in the Coldwell Banker HLR with average reported listing prices less than $100,000. There are 1,545 markets with average listing prices less than $300,000. 

 Georgia On Our Minds: Georgia has three markets on the most affordable housing list (Riverdale, College Park and Lithonia). Each of these markets has an average listing price of less than $80,000, and all are within a 20 mile commute to Atlanta, Ga., which has an average listing price of approximately $255,000.

 Low Monthly Payments:  Put in perspective, a $200,000 property with a 30-year-fixed mortgage at a 5% interest rate (with a 20% down payment) could translate to a relatively low monthly mortgage payment of less than $860.  Using the same parameters, the average $60,820 four-bedroom, two-bathroom home in Niagara Falls could translate to a month mortgage payment of approximately $260.  

The Golden (Housing) State:Out of the 10 most expensive real estate markets, six come from California: Newport Beach, Pacific Palisades, Rancho Palos Verdes, Saratoga, Los Gatos and Cupertino (home to Apple Inc. headquarters). 

High-End Stats.: The survey included more than 50 housing markets where the average listing price for the subject home was more than $750,000, including 15 markets whose average listing price exceeded $1 million.  

 Interactive Information: A video with more information on the most expensive and most affordable markets can be viewed here, and an interactive infographic with information on each state and market is also available.

TABLE 1 – TOP 10 LISTS
The top 10 most expensive and most affordable real estate housing markets in the 2011 Coldwell Banker U.S. Home Listing Report are:

TABLE 2 – U.S. HOME LISTING REPORT
For all markets included in the U.S. Home Listing Report, below are the most expensive and most affordable markets by state:

The 2011 average listing price from September 2010 – March 2011 in the District of Columbia:  

*Only one market was included in the study.

TABLE 3 – CANADIAN HOME LISTING REPORT

The same methodology was used to capture six months of listings in Canada for four-bedroom, two-bathroom homes from September 2010 – March 2011. The Canadian version of the Coldwell Banker HLR offers perspectives on several major Canadian cities (selected markets included at least five listings).

The Canadian market continues to experience record or near-record housing prices in major markets across the country.  The west coast continues to post some of the country’s highest prices.  Vancouver, B.C. again earned top spot as Canada’s most expensive city, showing $1.55 million for the four-bedroom, two-bath subject home.  Also in western Canada, Alberta’s strong economy and an abundance of Oil Sands jobs continues to fuel housing prices, with ‘boom town’ Fort McMurray leading the province with a price of $652,382.  Moving to the interior, Ontario saw one of the largest price disparities. Oakville, one of Canada’s most affluent communities, located west of Toronto, earned top spot for the province with $624,914, while just a few hundred miles away, Windsor was Canada’s most affordable market at $144,460.  Windsor, located across the border from Detroit, Michigan, has been impacted by the auto industry, and is now promoting its great value housing to the retirement market.

Below is a highlighted report on four-bedroom, two-bathroom home prices (in Canadian dollars²) within select markets in Canada:

*Only one market was included in the study.

¹The Coldwell Banker U.S. Home Listing Report includes residential real estate listings appearing on Coldwell Banker.com. This market data includes property listings from Coldwell Banker affiliates as well as listings from other Realogy franchise brands that fit the same four-bedroom, two-bathroom criteria. 

²1.00 Canadian Dollar = 1.02 U.S. dollar, at an exchange rate of 1.0220, as posted on bankofcanada.ca June 6, 2011.

About Coldwell Banker^®

Since 1906, the Coldwell Banker^® organization has been a premier provider of full-service residential and commercial real estate. Coldwell Banker is the oldest national real estate brand in the United States and today has a network of more than 87,000 sales agents working in approximately 3,200 offices in 49 countries and territories. The Coldwell Banker brand is known for creating innovative consumer services as recently seen by being the first national real estate brand to augment its web site www.coldwellbanker.comfor smart phones, the first to create an iPhone and iPad application, and the first to fully harness the power of video in real estate listings, news and information through its Coldwell Banker On Location^SMYouTube channel.  The Coldwell Banker system is a leader in specialty markets such as resort, new homes and luxury properties through its Coldwell Banker Previews International^® marketing program. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act.  Each office is independently owned and operated.