Home shoppers are increasingly looking beyond their local markets as affordability, employment opportunities, and proximity shape where they search for a home, according to a Realtor.com report published August 25.
Three in five home views on Realtor.com from the 100 largest U.S. metros went to listings outside those markets during the second quarter of 2026. This 60.1% out-of-market view rate is an increase from 48.2% in the pre-pandemic second quarter of 2019 and 59.1% a year earlier.
Jiayi Xu, a senior economist at Realtor.com, stated that home shoppers are looking beyond their home markets for varying reasons depending on the metro area. In lower-cost markets, affordability may allow residents to stay or attract shoppers from more expensive areas. In areas where prices have exceeded local budgets, shoppers are looking toward more affordable nearby markets or stronger job centers.
Western metros lead the nation in looking beyond local markets. In the second quarter of 2026, nearly two-thirds of online home views from Western metros went to listings outside those markets. This compares to 59.8% in the South, 58.3% in the Northeast, and 56.1% in the Midwest.
Affordability is driving shoppers in metros such as Salt Lake City, Denver, and Durham, N.C., to look toward nearby markets like Ogden, Utah, Colorado Springs, Colo., and Raleigh, N.C. In these instances, lower prices can offer more space for the same budget.
Employment also influences shopping destinations. For example, shoppers in Birmingham, Ala., have Nashville, Tenn., as their top destination, suggesting that a stronger job market can sometimes outweigh higher home prices.
The Realtor.com Cross Market Demand Report analyzed views of for-sale listings on the Realtor.com marketplace in the 100 largest metros between April and June 2026.
