A rash of sell-offs in these major American cities could mean good news for buyers.
A new analysis by Realtor.com zeroed in on metros with the highest rate of home sales over the past year. Instead of New York or California, as was especially evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, cities in Texas featured prominently.
But Kansas City, Missouri took the cake.
Affordable home prices are promoting healthy sales activity in some American metros. standret – stock.adobe.com
The housing market in Kansas City, Missouri, where the median list price is $380,000, is humming along. Julien – stock.adobe.com
Indianapolis, Indiana ranked second for sell-offs, as local Baby Boomers trade out Midwestern winters for warmer weather. SeanPavonePhoto – stock.adobe.com
Kansas City witnessed a rash of sell-offs between September 2024 and August 2025, according to the analysis.
The relatively high turnover of 45 sales per 1,000 housing units is partly to do with the the Midwestern metro’s affordable home prices and correspondingly high demand. The median list price hovers around $380,000, according to Realtor.com.
Harsh winter weather in Kansas City, as well as third-ranked Indianapolis, Indiana, may have contributed to the heightened sales activity as well, as aging Baby Boomer populations sought sunnier skies for retirement.
It’s hard to beat Indianapolis’ median list price of $320,000, but an October report from Axios identified a striking uptick in local residents’ wanderlust. Roughly 65% of local web searches for new homes looked outside of the city, up from 47% of searches in 2019.
Even balmy Texas saw a bump in home sales.
Scenic San Antonio joined three other Texas locales in the sell-off rankings. f11photo – stock.adobe.com
A housing boom has helped the Texas real estate market remain comfortable for buyers. New Africa – stock.adobe.com
San Antonio, Kansas City and Indianapolis roughly tied this year, with turnover rates of approximately 45 sales per 1,000 homes.
Four of the top 10 metros with the most offloaded homes were concentrated in the Lone Star State. This doesn’t mean residents are moseying on out, however.
Texas turned into a real estate powerhouse during the pandemic, attracting residents from across the country in search of wide open spaces, blue skies, cheap taxes — and freedom from the COVID restrictions that gripped states like New York. Instead of suffering under tight supply, Texas went big on building.
Restless empty nesters and rising costs of living are also prompting owners to sell. pureradiancecmp – stock.adobe.com
Sell-offs in popular cities like Nashville and Charlotte can be traced to hiked prices. bzzup – stock.adobe.com
A new-construction push in metros like Dallas, Austin and Houston promoted a flurry of real estate activity. Economic research analyst Hannah Jones told Realtor.com that increased supply helped temper rising housing prices and left buyers spoiled for choice, hence the frequent home sales.
San Antonio, in particular, enjoys a comfortably low media list price of just $329,000.
Local experts told Realtor.com that empty nesters were the main culprit behind sell offs in fourth-place Las Vegas, Nevada. Homes in Sin City changed hands at a rate of 43 sales per 1,000 units.
Both Nashville, Tennessee and Charlotte, North Carolina put up strong numbers at 42 sales per 1,000 homes. Rather than high supply, however, brokers pointed to accelerating costs as the reason behind these metros’ housing hustle.
The cost of living has risen in both Nashville, with a median list price of $536,739, and Charlotte, with a median list price of $438,348. Brokers said rising costs prompted some homeowners to cut bait and run this year.