Vacation Housing Trending Amid Pandemic in US
Based on new data from Zillow, impacts from the coronavirus pandemic have rippled out to traditional U.S. vacation destinations, which are seeing increased interest from homebuyers as shifting priorities and preferences transform where and how people want to live. Sale listings are up nearly 50% from a year ago in metro areas typically considered vacation destinations, defined as metros with at least 65,000 people and five times more vacation homes than the U.S. as a whole. That's compared to a 37% increase in page views nationally. Vacation metros seeing an uptick in demand include places like the Jersey Shore area, Myrtle Beach, S.C., Key West, Fla., Lake Tahoe, Nev., Cape Cod, Mass., and Park City, Utah. Places like Salisbury, Md. (near Ocean City), Traverse City, Mich., located along the shores of Lake Michigan, and Brainerd, Minn., a forest and lake region along the Mississippi River, were among areas following this trend. Those three areas all saw year-over-year pending sales increases of more than 30%. Vacation spots in the Northeast also are heating up. Ocean City, N.J., on the Jersey Shore, has the highest share of vacation homes, at almost 50%. It also sees more than twice the rate of listing favorites as the U.S. average, and pending home sales are up 38.1%. East Stroudsburg, Pa., in the Poconos region and well-known for its natural scenic beauty, saw a 90% increase in page views -- with home values expected to grow 5.6% in the next year, compared with 4.9% throughout the state. Close proximity to a beach, lake or ski area is a common theme among the top 5 hottest vacation areas, including Cape Cod (No.2), Brainerd, Minn. (No. 3), Park City, Utah (No. 4), and Naples, Fla. (No. 5).
Tags : INTERNATIONAL