Report names top 10 markets for first-time homebuyers

Philadelphia and Pittsburgh are among the top 10 markets for first-time homebuyers this year, according to a recent report by realtor.com®.

Realtor.com® analyzed several factors that make a particular market ideal for first-time homebuyers, such as city popularity, home prices, inventory, time on market, and unemployment rates to arrive at a list of the top 10 markets for first-time homebuyers for the spring homebuying season.

“As we head into home-buying season, these markets show favorable conditions for first-time buyers, which is encouraging because these buyers are crucial to the housing market,” said Steve Berkowitz, CEO of Move Inc., operator of realtor.com®, in the report.

“First-time buyers have a widespread impact on the local housing markets. In transitioning from renters to owners, new buyers pay property taxes and other fees and taxes associated with homeownership that benefit local schools and services,” Berkowtiz said.

The top 10 markets for first-time homebuyers are:

1. Pittsburgh, PA (Median listing price: $135,000)
2. Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL (Median listing price: $169,900)
3. Philadelphia, PA-NJ (NJ) 
(Median listing price: $174,900)
4. Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
 (Median listing price: $175,000)
5. Orlando, FL (Median listing price: $191,900)
6. Jacksonville, FL (Median listing price: $198,000)
7. Philadelphia, PA-NJ (PA) 
(Median listing price: $219,000)
8. Dallas, TX 
(Median listing price: $224,900)
9. Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, NC
 (Median listing price: $227,500)
10. Phoenix-Mesa, AZ (Median listing price: $244,900)

Realtor.com® examined housing indicators including search rank, median list price, year-over-year change in inventory, median age of inventory and unemployment rates across 146 markets. It evaluated the metrics against the needs and desires of the typical first-time homebuyer. All metrics considered were pulled directly from realtor.com® February 2014 data and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.