{"id":973,"date":"2019-03-20T14:53:00","date_gmt":"2019-03-20T14:53:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.realtrends.com\/blog\/2019\/03\/20\/best-metros-for-first-time-homebuyers-depends-on-who-you-ask\/"},"modified":"2025-03-13T02:12:41","modified_gmt":"2025-03-13T02:12:41","slug":"best-metros-for-first-time-homebuyers-depends-on-who-you-ask","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.realtrends.com\/blog\/2019\/03\/20\/best-metros-for-first-time-homebuyers-depends-on-who-you-ask\/","title":{"rendered":"Best Metros for First-time Homebuyers? Depends on Who You Ask"},"content":{"rendered":"

Best Metros for First-time Homebuyers? Depends on Who You Ask<\/h2>\n

Zillow’s ranking of best cities for new homebuyers places Tampa and Las Vegas at the top, while Bankrate found Pittsburgh and Raleigh to be most amenable.<\/em><\/h6>\n

In spite of the low unemployment rate and flat inflation in the United States, housing affordability remains a hurdle for first-time homebuyers.<\/p>\n

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The U.S. housing market<\/a> has cooled recently, creating conditions amenable for buyers. Zillow researchers note that inventory is up 1 percent year-over-year, after being down 8.7 percent last year. It’s the first time inventory has been up heading into home-shopping season in at least five years. In even more welcome news for first-time buyers<\/a>, inventory of less-expensive starter homes has turned around far more \u2013 up 4.1 percent after being down 12.9 percent last year. Yet, there still are not enough homes for sale to meet buyer demand, and the market remains competitive.<\/p>\n

According to Zillow, first-time buyers make up 46 percent of all buyers, and more than six in 10 of them are millennials, creating a recipe for frustration.<\/p>\n

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“Unfortunately, prices of homes in the lower third of the market have risen so much in recent years that for many households’ budgets they no longer qualify as affordable,” said Skylar Olsen<\/span>, Zillow’s director of economic research. “But markets like Tampa<\/span> and Las Vegas<\/span> still provide plenty of bargains.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

In fact, Tampa tops Zillow’s list of most-affordable markets f<\/a>or first-time homebuyers for the second consecutive year.  Zillow’s list of the best markets for first-time buyers is based on four metrics:<\/p>\n