Good News for New York State

While much of the news coming out of Zillow’s Q3 Real Estate Market Reports last week was grim–1/3 of Americans who sold a home in the past year lost money– there is some good news to share for  select parts of the country. In Central/Western New York and various cities in North and South Carolina, home values are actually increasing.

Ithaca, NY, home to Cornell University and Ithaca College, saw the greatest gains in home values nationwide, up 5.6% since last year, bringing the Zillow Home Value Index to $179,000. At a time when many markets are starting to see home values depreciate over 5 years, Ithaca’s 5-year annualized change is a healthy 7.8%. It’s difficult to pinpoint an exact reason for Ithaca’s appreciation, though it’s clear the city didn’t experience the huge rise in home prices that many markets did over recent years.

The New York Times recently noted that the city is luring second home owners and retirees with its picturesque setting on Cayuga Lake (you may be familiar with the “Ithaca is Gorges” slogan), cultural offerings and burgeoning  wine industry.

Ithaca is a reasonable four hour drive from New York City, where many Cornell and Ithaca alums live. If those alums are looking to escape New York City during summer weekends, like most NYC residents try to do, I can see the appeal of turning to a beautiful lake town like Ithaca, where you can practically buy a house for the price of a summer share in the Hamptons.

Ithaca wasn’t the only New York city with good news. I was thrilled to call my hometown paper, the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, to tell them that Rochester’s home values rose 3.1% year over year. The city with the greatest 5-year annualized appreciation in the country was Glens Falls, NY .

Other bright spots nationwide include:

• State College, PA -  home values rose 4.0%
• Jacksonville, NC - home values rose 3.9%
• Winstom Salem, NC - home values rose 3.4%
• Bay City, MI - home values rose 3.2%
• Greenville, SC -  home values rose 2.8%

Have a theory as to why these cities are bucking the downward trend we see elsewhere across the country? Chime in on the Ithaca thread in Zillow Discussions with your thoughts, I’d love to hear your two cents.