Looking for a hot housing market? Three of nation's top 10 are in Utah

Utah’s three major markets are all predicted to be among the 10 hottest housing markets for 2017 by Zillow, a Seattle-based real estate data and analytics firm. Provo came in at No. 3, Salt Lake City at No. 5 and Ogden at No. 8. Nashville was the top-rated market with Seattle finishing ahead of Provo at No. 2. Orlando finished at No. 4.

Portland, Oregon; Knoxville, Tennessee; Denver and Sacramento round out the 10 hot markets.

To determine which markets would heat up over the next 12 months, Zillow looked for places with quickly rising home values, low unemployment rates and strong income growth. Provo has the lowest unemployment rate of the 10 hottest markets at 2.7 percent. Home values in all three Utah markets are expected to appreciate more than 4 percent in 2017, according to Zillow.

Although Nashville is ranked No. 1, Zillow’s list is largely made up of western cities. Portland reported the strongest home value growth in 2016 among the 100 largest U.S. metros, with home values up almost 15 percent over the past year. Housing experts predict that Portland, Seattle and Denver will continue to outperform the average national home value growth in 2017. Nationally, Zillow expects home values to appreciate 3 percent over the next year.

“Zillow’s 2017 list highlights that jobs and opportunities are increasingly growing in smaller markets away from the coasts,” said Zillow chief economist Svenja Gudell. “Mid-size cities like Salt Lake City, Portland and Nashville are desirable places to live, with good employment opportunities and steady economic growth. The growth and demand for housing will drive up home prices in 2017 and these hot markets are experiencing change as more people discover them.”

Three variables influenced Zillow’s hot market predictions: Zillow’s Home Value Forecast, which forecasts the change in the Zillow Home Value Index over the next 12 months; recent income growth; and current unemployment rates. Those three variables were then scaled for the 100 largest U.S. metros and combined to form a “hotness score,” producing the top 10 list.

Housing experts were surveyed in the Zillow Home Price Expectations Survey between Oct. 28 and Nov. 15. The survey was conducted by Pulsenomics LLC on behalf of Zillow Inc. and asked the experts about their expectations for the housing market. A total of 111 experts were surveyed.