With a median home price of $410,800 as of the second quarter of 2025, real estate is still out of reach for many, and for first-time buyers in particular. But on a national level, home prices have fallen slightly over the last few years, per the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, citing data from the Census Bureau and Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Experts predict modest gains in the coming year, with Zillow forecasting 1.2% growth and the National Association of Realtors forecasting a 4% increase. However, prices in some cities could see prices rise much higher. That’s especially true in the northeastern and Great Lakes regions, which have seen some of the fastest growth over the past few years and have metro areas where the real estate market is still going strong.
Recent analyses from Visual Capitalist and Veros identified the metros with the fastest-growing home prices. GOBankingRates compared their picks with data from Zillow to find the cities most likely to see the biggest price gains in 2026, based on one-year price increases and continuing upward price trends.
Albany, New York
- Average home value: $315,693 (per Zillow)
- 1-year price-increase: 4.6%
Buffalo, New York
- Average home value: $237,482
- 1-year increase 3.6%
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Canton, Ohio
- Average home value: $163,724
- 1-year increase: 6.1%
Hartford, Connecticut
- Average home value: $194,914
- 1-year increase: 7.3%
New Haven, Connecticut
- Average home value: $315,954
- 1-year price increase: 3.9%
Peoria, Illinois
- Average home value: $128,058
- 1-year price increase: 8.6%
Rochester, New York
- Average home value: $228,297
- 1-year increase: 2.7%
Rockford, Illinois
- Average home value: $170,482
- 1-year increase: $7.8%
Springfield, Illinois
- Average home value: $160,497
- 1-year increase: 6.8%
York, Pennsylvania
- Average home value: $268,221
- 1-year increase: 5.1%
What Drives Home Prices Up?
Home prices rise and fall according to the balance between supply and demand. When demand is stronger than supply, buyers have to compete for homes and are willing to pay more for them as a result.
Many factors contribute to the imbalance. For example, strong job growth might attract new residents to a city and create a housing shortage. As Zillow reported in January 2025, Buffalo had the nation’s highest number of new jobs per new home permit, indicating a home shortage there. And Albany, Hartford, New Haven and York are — or are within commuting distance of — some of America’s highest-growth areas for jobs, according to Realtor.com.
Illinois, which has three cities on GOBankingRates’ list, faces a statewide shortage of new construction that the Illinois Policy Institute attributes to restrictive zoning. Peoria’s home inventory has fallen 66% since 2018, for example, and Rockford and Springfield are down 43% and 58%, respectively.
Demand for homes in Canton in strong for many reasons, including a large influx of new residents from New York City. In fact, Redfin noted that more new arrivals come from New York than from any other city.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 10 Up-and-Coming Cities Likely To See the Biggest Price Growth in 2026
