Brighton has the hottest housing market in America, according to Realtor.com.
And it is one of the few communities locally that is seeing higher sales this year than in 2021.
The annual Hottest ZIP Codes Report has consistently ranked some part of the Rochester area among its top markets. The past couple of years, it’s been Irondequoit’s west side.
Rankings like these are plentiful, but they get reported nationwide.
“It lets the nation know that Rochester is a market that makes sense to buy in," said Lanie Bittner, president of the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors.
But the market is shifting overall, here and across the nation.
"It's different than it was a month ago, than it was a couple months ago," Bittner said.
Sales are down 10% across Monroe County, year to date; 7% across the Finger Lakes region, records show. Housing sales have dropped nationally for six straight months. But prices continue to rise.
"The affordability, from a housing perspective, captivates people from across the nation," Bittner said. "The median price of a home nationally is is at least $100,000 more than the Brighton market. And so that is remarkably affordable."
This latest ranking was based on the number of unique online viewers per property and the average number of days a listing remained active through the first half of the year.
| Rank | ZIP code | ZIP name | Median list price |
| 1 | 14618 | Brighton, NY | $275,000 |
| 2 | 03062 | Manchester, New Hampshire | $536,000 |
| 3 | 43085 | Columbus, Ohio | $467,000 |
| 4 | 03038 | Boston, Massachusetts | $447,000 |
| 5 | 04062 | Portland, Maine | $505,000 |
Source: Realtor.com
Still, we are past the boon of last year, when "everything that got listed had strong demand, had tons of showings, multiple offers (and was) selling for well over list price," Bittner said. "That has steadied a bit."
That’s particularly true for houses priced at over a half million dollars.
On the whole, she continued, "buyers ... have kind of come off of that, 'OK, I have to get anything because I need to buy a house,' back to 'OK, I want to move into something that is move-in ready.'"
And while the market is no longer red hot, that doesn't mean sellers have missed the window. Siad Bittner: "I wouldn't tell anybody it's too late because it really depends on the house."
Houses in great showing condition, well cared for, with updates are still drawing high prices and selling quickly.
