GRAY, TN – The Tri-Cities housing market kept a strong national rating in the Wall Street Journal – Realtor.com Emerging Housing Market Third Quarter Index.

The Johnson City three-county metro area is ranked #10, down from #8 in the Q2 Index, while the four-county Kingsport-Bristol metro area is ranked #11, down from #10 in Q2.

According to The Wall St. Journal and Realtor.com, “the Index ​analyzes key housing market data, as well as economic vitality and lifestyle metrics, to surface emerging housing markets that offer a high quality of life and are expected to see future home price appreciation. Markets offering lower-cost living, strong employment, and convenient commutes performed best as higher mortgage rates and prices have caused home sales to slow nationwide.”

Northeast Tennessee Association of Realtors (NETAR) President Jan Stapleton said the index is a great resource for people who are looking to move and an excellent marketing tool for the Tri-Cities region” When asked why people are moving to the area, she said many of those who have made the move citied quality of life issues.

The index methodology looks at: The ranking evaluates the 300 most populous core-based statistical areas, as measured by the U.S. Census Bureau, and defined by March 2020 delineation standards for eight indicators across two broad categories: real estate market (50%) and economic health and quality of life (50%). Each market is ranked on a scale of 0 to 100 according to the category indicators, and the overall index is based on the weighted sum of these rankings. The real estate market category indicators are: real estate demand (16.6%), based on average page views per property: real estate supply (16.6%), based on median days on market for real estate listings, median listing price trend (16.6%). The economic and quality of life category indicators are unemployment (6.25%); wages (6.251%); regional price parities (6.25%); the share of foreign born (6.25%); small businesses (6.25%); amenities (6.25%), measured as the average number of stores per specific “everyday splurge” category (coffee, upscale/specialty grocery, home improvement, fitness) per capita in an area; commute (6.25%); and estimated effective real estate taxes (6.25%).