Illinois Town Shocks the World – Named Hottest Housing Market

If we're being honest with each other, not many saw this one coming. I am a fan of this underrated Illinois place, but even I was shocked to see it named the hottest housing market in America by major publications.

This is no small potatoes site that came up with this stunning real estate ranking. This is the spring 2024 Wall Street Journal and Realtor.com emerging housing markets list. I could give you one thousand guesses what the #1 market is, but I'm betting you still wouldn't name it...(*drum roll*)

And the hottest housing market in America is?

Take a bow, Rockford, Illinois, it's you. I share that image for a chuckle since famous YouTuber Nick Johnson just traveled through the worst parts of Rockford. Spoiler Alert: there are a lot of great things to share about Rockford, too.

How did Rockford, Illinois get this incredible housing market honor? The WSJ/Realtor ranking shared the details on how they made this ranking.

Say what you want about Rockford, but the numbers don't lie. Many homes are affordable and the unemployment rate is lower than most. I'm not a numbers guy since I'm math-challenged, but my family has had friends in Rockford for years and the mall there used to be epic. Does Rockford have challenges? Sure. All cities do. But, I think being ranked at the top of a very prestigious housing ranking like this says a lot about the direction Rockford is heading. Let the haters hate.