SEATTLE, July 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- A short
commute has long come with a hefty price tag. But as remote work
became more commonplace during the pandemic, Americans prioritized
affordability over quick access to the office. Home values within a
short commute of the country's biggest downtown job centers are
growing more slowly than those farther out, a new analysis from
Zillow® and HERE Technologies shows, reflecting Americans'
preference for more-affordable homes with more space during
the Great Reshuffling.
Homes within a 10-minute commute of a metro's downtown job
center are among the most expensive in 18 of the 35 metros
included in the analysis, yet these areas had the fastest-growing
home values in nine of those metros as of 2017. Now homes closest
to downtown are growing fastest in only three of those 18 metros,
and they are growing slowest or even falling in 11.
"Home buyers are placing less of a premium on a short commute
thanks to the rise of remote work," says Zillow economic data
analyst Nicole Bachaud. "Americans
are searching for a combination of affordability and more space,
whether that's outdoor space or an extra bedroom to turn into a
home office. In expensive, dense markets, that usually means a home
farther out from the downtown core, which is more palatable when
you don't need to commute every day, if at all. In more sprawling
metros, buyers are flocking to less expensive downtown cores,
bringing a renewed interest to these city centers."
In metros where home values in the urban core have typically
been lower than in the suburbs — places such as Cleveland, Detroit, Baltimore and Indianapolis — home values are trending up
near downtown. A home within a 10-minute commute of downtown
Detroit is now $101,228 more expensive than it was in 2019, and
the price of living within a 10-minute commute of downtown
Indianapolis has grown
$54,025 over the same period.
While these two forces seem to be in opposition, they are really
two sides of the same coin: Americans are seeking larger, more
affordable homes as flexible work opportunities bring new
expectations for what they want and need in a home. As people seek
affordability, they are willing to live with a longer commute if
they can save on housing costs. And less expensive downtown cores
are gaining in popularity relative to the pricier suburbs
nearby.
"The pandemic significantly impacted roadway congestion levels,
traffic patterns and the timing of traditional 'rush hours' across
America," says HERE traffic data scientist Kyle Jackson. "Remote work flexibility has
contributed to morning rush hours being less congested and, in some
markets, morning rush hour moved 60 minutes later. While highway
traffic congestion plummeted in the early stages of the pandemic
and is now rising rapidly across the country, local streets have
been much less affected. Traffic levels have stayed stable at
around 80% of pre-COVID levels since fall 2020. These traffic
trends will be critical to examine as communities continue the
Great Reshuffling."
Metros where values are growing the slowest, or even falling,
for homes within a 10-minute commute of the downtown job center
include New York, San Francisco, Boston, Chicago and Dallas. A home with a 10-minute commute in
New York is $73,673 cheaper than in 2019, and a home with the
same commute in Boston is
$21,175 cheaper. While these metros
are geographically diverse and have wildly differing price points,
the trait they share is that home values are most expensive near
downtown and generally decrease the farther away a property is
located.
In the markets that saw the most net inbound moves in
2020 — Phoenix, Charlotte and Austin — home values are growing quickly
everywhere you look. In Phoenix
and Charlotte, buyer demand is
driving up prices all around both metros, regardless of commute
times. In Austin, buyers appear
willing to pay up to be near the urban core. Austin home values are growing fastest for
properties within a 40-minute commute of downtown, which are also
the most expensive areas of the metro. A home with a 10-minute
commute in Austin is now
$229,553 more expensive than it was
two years ago, by far the biggest increase among the 35 metros in
the analysis.
An interactive map showing home value changes from 2009 to 2021
based on commute time in each of the 35 markets included in Zillow
and HERE Technologies' analysis, which can be embedded in any
website with an iframe, is available at:
app.developer.here.com/home-value-commute-times-zillow-covid19-pandemic.
|
Homes Within a
10-Minute Commute of Downtown
|
Hottest
Area
|
Coolest
Area
|
Metropolitan
Area
|
Dollar Amount
Change in Typical Home Value Since 2019
|
Percentage Change
in Typical Home Value Since 2019
|
Commute Time to
Downtown
|
Change in Typical
Home Value Since 2019
|
Commute Time to
Downtown
|
Change in Typical
Home Value Since 2019
|
Atlanta,
GA
|
$66,372
|
24.9%
|
11–20
Minutes
|
33.6%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
23.9%
|
Austin, TX
|
$229,553
|
49.5%
|
11–20
Minutes
|
53.0%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
20.1%
|
Baltimore,
MD
|
$45,061
|
27.4%
|
11–20
Minutes
|
29.0%
|
51–60
Minutes
|
17.4%
|
Boston, MA
|
-$21,175
|
-2.5%
|
61–70
Minutes
|
30.2%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
-2.5%
|
Charlotte,
NC
|
$92,217
|
34.4%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
34.4%
|
21–30
Minutes
|
25.7%
|
Chicago,
IL
|
$26,350
|
7.3%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
24.5%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
7.3%
|
Cincinnati,
OH
|
$51,018
|
31.0%
|
11–20
Minutes
|
32.1%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
22.3%
|
Cleveland,
OH
|
$33,924
|
72.5%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
72.5%
|
31–40
Minutes
|
21.2%
|
Columbus,
OH
|
$48,756
|
21.0%
|
31–40
Minutes
|
31.4%
|
0–-10
Minutes
|
21.0%
|
Dallas, TX
|
$37,077
|
12.0%
|
61–-70
Minutes
|
32.9%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
12.0%
|
Denver, CO
|
$70,412
|
14.6%
|
71–-80
Minutes
|
32.6%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
14.6%
|
Detroit,
MI
|
$101,228
|
81.3%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
81.3%
|
41–50
Minutes
|
17.8%
|
Houston,
TX
|
$29,758
|
9.4%
|
11–20
Minutes
|
24.7%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
9.4%
|
Indianapolis,
IN
|
$54,025
|
69.3%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
69.3%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
17.2%
|
Kansas City,
MO
|
$51,902
|
56.8%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
56.8%
|
71–80
Minutes
|
12.5%
|
Las Vegas,
NV
|
$24,426
|
10.0%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
44.9%
|
41–-50
Minutes
|
-16.1%
|
Los Angeles,
CA
|
$126,340
|
17.0%
|
71–80
Minutes
|
26.6%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
17.0%
|
Miami, FL
|
$32,545
|
9.1%
|
61–70
Minutes
|
27.5%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
9.1%
|
Minneapolis,
MN
|
$49,985
|
18.6%
|
81–-90
Minutes
|
25.3%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
18.6%
|
New York,
NY
|
-$73,673
|
-8.7%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
25.7%
|
11–-20
Minutes
|
-10.0%
|
Orlando,
FL
|
$49,634
|
20.1%
|
71–80
Minutes
|
35.3%
|
21–30
Minutes
|
16.5%
|
Philadelphia,
PA
|
$20,222
|
6.0%
|
11–20
Minutes
|
42.4%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
6.0%
|
Phoenix,
AZ
|
$105,883
|
44.6%
|
61–70
Minutes
|
48.2%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
30.2%
|
Pittsburgh,
PA
|
$64,688
|
42.8%
|
0–-10
Minutes
|
42.8%
|
41–50
Minutes
|
20.2%
|
Portland,
OR
|
$85,048
|
16.3%
|
71–80
Minutes
|
30.3%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
16.3%
|
Riverside,
CA
|
$86,820
|
31.8%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
31.8%
|
41–50
Minutes
|
18.8%
|
Sacramento,
CA
|
$85,850
|
21.5%
|
41–50
Minutes
|
26.1%
|
71–80
Minutes
|
17.9%
|
St. Louis,
MO
|
$55,693
|
35.8%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
35.8%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
12.4%
|
San Antonio,
TX
|
$43,084
|
35.0%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
49.3%
|
21–30
Minutes
|
15.2%
|
San Diego,
CA
|
$92,935
|
15.5%
|
41–50
Minutes
|
26.8%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
11.4%
|
San Francisco,
CA
|
-$20,753
|
-1.6%
|
81–90
Minutes
|
21.7%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
-1.6%
|
San Jose,
CA
|
$100,991
|
10.5%
|
51–60
Minutes
|
24.5%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
10.5%
|
Seattle,
WA
|
$95,063
|
12.2%
|
51–60
Minutes
|
39.5%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
12.2%
|
Tampa, FL
|
$102,178
|
42.2%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
42.2%
|
71–80
Minutes
|
18.6%
|
Washington,
D.C.
|
$35,690
|
5.6%
|
71–80
Minutes
|
25.6%
|
0–10
Minutes
|
5.6%
|
Methodology
Zillow identified ZIP codes that function
as job centers in the 35 largest U.S. metros by using the number of
employees per square mile from ZIP code–level data from the U.S.
Census Bureau's 2016 County Business Patterns dataset, and the
number of inbound trips per square mile for a morning commute using
data provided by HERE Technologies. Using the centroids of those
ZIP codes as the destination location for the commute times, Zillow
determined geographic areas that fell within each commute time
band, from a commute of less than 10 minutes to a 90-minute
commute, via HERE Technologies' Routing API. HERE Isoline Routing
calculates all the destinations a vehicle can reach within a
specific amount of time or travel distance, incorporating real-time
and historical traffic data. Zillow's home value estimates
(Zestimates) were combined with these geographic areas to determine
the median home value for each commute-time band. The home values
used were from May 1, 2021 and
compared to home values from May 1 in
previous years in two-year increments to determine the growth rate
over each two-year period. The commute times were based on commutes
taking place at 8 a.m. local time on
Monday, May 24, 2021.
About Zillow Group
Zillow Group, Inc.
(NASDAQ: Z and ZG) is reimagining real estate to make it easier to
unlock life's next chapter.
As the most-visited real estate website in the United States, Zillow® and its affiliates
offer customers an on-demand experience for selling, buying,
renting or financing with transparency and nearly seamless
end-to-end service. Zillow Offers® buys and sells homes directly in
dozens of markets across the country, allowing sellers control over
their timeline. Zillow Home Loans™, our affiliate lender, provides
our customers with an easy option to get pre-approved and secure
financing for their next home purchase. Zillow recently launched
Zillow Homes, Inc., a licensed brokerage entity, to streamline
Zillow Offers transactions.
Zillow Group's brands, affiliates and subsidiaries include
Zillow®, Zillow Offers®, Zillow Premier Agent®, Zillow Home Loans™,
Zillow Closing Services™, Zillow Homes, Inc., Trulia®, Out East®,
StreetEasy® and HotPads®. Zillow Home Loans, LLC is an Equal
Housing Lender, NMLS #10287 (www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org).
About HERE Technologies
HERE, a location data and
technology platform, moves people, businesses and cities forward by
harnessing the power of location. By leveraging our open platform,
we empower our customers to achieve better outcomes - from helping
a city manage its infrastructure or a business optimize its assets
to guiding drivers to their destination safely. To learn more about
HERE, please visit www.here.com and http://360.here.com.
View original
content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-great-reshuffling-is-changing-how-far-americans-are-willing-to-commute-301338363.html
SOURCE Zillow