Best Metro Areas for Home Price Appreciation (2026)
Metro areas scoring highest on appreciation potential. The score rewards steady price growth in the three to eight percent range and penalizes markets running hot enough to look overheated, so this is not simply a list of the fastest recent gains.
Top 25 metro areas
Peoria, IL leads with a median price of $172,742, median rent of $1,179, and a 5.3% cap rate.
| # | Metro area | Appreciation score | Median price | Median rent | Cap rate | Population | Analyze |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peoria, IL | 94 | $172,742 | $1,179 | 5.3% | 312,462 | Run numbers |
| 2 | Syracuse, NY | 91 | $264,903 | $1,633 | 4.8% | 658,694 | Run numbers |
| 3 | Duluth, MN | 91 | $264,350 | $1,381 | 4.1% | 280,576 | Run numbers |
| 4 | Flint, MI | 90 | $197,858 | $1,096 | 4.3% | 405,280 | Run numbers |
| 5 | Youngstown, OH | 89 | $175,405 | $1,030 | 4.6% | 540,328 | Run numbers |
| 6 | Erie, PA | 89 | $224,109 | $1,138 | 4.0% | 270,495 | Run numbers |
| 7 | Anchorage, AK | 88 | $422,103 | $1,770 | 3.3% | 399,335 | Run numbers |
| 8 | South Bend, IN | 88 | $238,866 | $1,340 | 4.4% | 272,388 | Run numbers |
| 9 | Green Bay, WI | 88 | $346,517 | $1,179 | 2.6% | 268,393 | Run numbers |
| 10 | Milwaukee, WI | 87 | $390,238 | $1,538 | 3.1% | 1,568,940 | Run numbers |
| 11 | Albany, NY | 87 | $370,533 | $1,681 | 3.5% | 871,759 | Run numbers |
| 12 | Davenport, IA | 86 | $195,380 | $1,021 | 4.1% | 318,134 | Run numbers |
| 13 | Buffalo, NY | 85 | $288,316 | $1,444 | 3.9% | 1,163,462 | Run numbers |
| 14 | Grand Rapids, MI | 85 | $359,923 | $1,623 | 3.5% | 1,020,405 | Run numbers |
| 15 | Rochester, NY | 85 | $285,034 | $1,597 | 4.4% | 960,018 | Run numbers |
| 16 | Lancaster, PA | 85 | $388,207 | $1,526 | 3.1% | 553,202 | Run numbers |
| 17 | Canton, OH | 85 | $218,776 | $1,084 | 3.9% | 374,199 | Run numbers |
| 18 | Chicago, IL | 84 | $353,998 | $2,266 | 5.0% | 9,520,081 | Run numbers |
| 19 | Cleveland, OH | 84 | $252,210 | $1,461 | 4.5% | 2,079,759 | Run numbers |
| 20 | Akron, OH | 84 | $241,251 | $1,260 | 4.1% | 700,578 | Run numbers |
| 21 | Kalamazoo, MI | 84 | $279,752 | $1,298 | 3.6% | 261,426 | Run numbers |
| 22 | New York, NY | 83 | $727,625 | $3,503 | 3.8% | 19,810,653 | Run numbers |
| 23 | Lincoln, NE | 83 | $304,242 | $1,344 | 3.5% | 339,707 | Run numbers |
| 24 | Atlantic City, NJ | 83 | $384,211 | $2,151 | 4.4% | 274,339 | Run numbers |
| 25 | Kansas City, MO | 82 | $329,641 | $1,548 | 3.7% | 2,078,942 | Run numbers |
Showing the top 25 of 179 qualifying metro areas.
How this ranking is calculated
We scored 179 metro areas with a population over 250,000 and ranked them by appreciation score, which blends recent home price growth with an overheating penalty. Markets without both a median home price and a median rent are excluded, because cash flow cannot be estimated without both.
Every figure assumes a median-priced home rented at the local median rent, financed with 20 percent down on a 30-year loan at 6.85%, with closing costs at 3 percent of price and operating costs at 35 percent of rent. Operating costs cover taxes, insurance, maintenance, vacancy, and management.
These are modeled estimates for comparing markets, not quotes on a specific property. A real deal turns on the individual property, its condition, and the actual rent it can command. Run any market that interests you through the calculator with real numbers before you make an offer.
A note on metro population
Metro population here is the sum of the counties that make up each metro area, rolled up from county census figures. We publish it because the size filter is what keeps a list like this honest: without it, the highest yields in the country belong to towns of a few thousand people where you cannot actually place capital.
Other metro rankings
Best Metro Areas for Rental Cash Flow
Large US metro areas ranked by estimated monthly cash flow on a median-priced rental, after mortgage and operating costs.
Highest Cap Rate Metro Areas
Large US metro areas ranked by estimated cap rate on a median-priced rental, using local median rent.
Best Metro Areas to Invest in Real Estate
Large US metro areas ranked by overall investment score, blending cash flow, appreciation, stability, and affordability.
County-level rankings
Metro averages hide variation inside them. County rankings go a level deeper.
Check a deal in Peoria, IL
These are metro medians. Put in a real price and rent to see whether a specific property clears your bar.