Skyrocketing home prices, the endless quest for a parking spot and the rising cost of avocado toast have many urbanites bidding farewell to their fair cities in favor of locales that have houses they can afford.
Although it may not have the glitz and glamor of coastal cities like New York or Los Angeles, buying a home in Topeka, Kansas, is within reach for many people. Kansas's capital city boasts a median home list price of $250,000, making it the No. 1 emerging housing market this fall, according to the quarterly Wall Street Journal/Realtor.com Emerging Housing Markets Index.
The report pinpoints the leading markets for homebuyers and investors among the 300 largest metropolitan areas. The analysis considered metros with robust housing demand, taking into account factors such as local listing page views, the availability of homes for sale, property taxes and the median duration homes remain on the market before being sold.
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Top 20 Emerging Housing Markets
| Rank | Metro | Population | Unemployment Rate | Median Home List Price In September |
| 1 | Topeka, Kansas | 231,783 | 2.9% | $250,000 |
| 2 | Elkhart-Goshen, Indiana | 206,890 | 4.3% | $280,000 |
| 3 | Oshkosh-Neenah, Wisconsin | 170,718 | 2.5% | $317,000 |
| 4 | Fort Wayne, Indiana | 426,076 | 3.3% | $312,000 |
| 5 | Lafayette-West Lafayette, Indiana | 226,452 | 3.2% | $293,000 |
| 6 | Racine, Wisconsin | 195,846 | 3.4% | $352,000 |
| 7 | Manchester-Nashua, New Hampshire | 426,594 | 1.7% | $535,000 |
| 8 | Concord, New Hampshire | 156,020 | 2.1% | $550,000 |
| 9 | Columbus, Ohio | 2,161,511 | 3.1% | $380,000 |
| 10 | Johnson City, Tennessee | 210,256 | 3.4% | $425,000 |
| 11 | Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, Tennessee-Virginia | 311,272 | 3.3% | $325,000 |
| 12 | Jefferson City, Missouri | 150,350 | 2.5% | $318,000 |
| 13 | Springfield, Ohio | 134,831 | 3.5% | $200,000 |
| 14 | Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, California | 443,837 | 4% | $1,895,000 |
| 15 | Dayton, Ohio | 812,595 | 3.6% | $240,000 |
| 16 | Janesville-Beloit, Wisconsin | 164,040 | 3.3% | $320,000 |
| 17 | Canton-Massillon, Ohio | 399,316 | 3.6% | $235,000 |
| 18 | Knoxville, Tennessee | 907,968 | 3% | $475,000 |
| 19 | Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, Connecticut | 1,221,725 | 3.4% | $400,000 |
| 20 | Worcester, Massachusetts-Connecticut | 980,137 | 2.9% | $490,000 |
Source: Wall Street Journal/Realtor.com
"These areas are relatively inexpensive," said Hannah Jones, a senior economic research analyst at Realtor.com. "Inflation remains high, home prices are high, mortgage rates are high, so buyers are being hit from every angle right now. For buyers who do need to purchase a home, it's important that they can find one where the monthly payments are going to be reasonable."
Rising home prices and mortgage rates approaching 8% are stretching buyers' budgets to the breaking point. Home prices were about 40% higher nationally, and the typical mortgage rate was 114% greater in September than it was four years ago.
"Wage growth has not kept up with inflation," Jones said. "Homes have to be low-priced for monthly mortgage payments to be reasonable."
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