This year's hottest markets mostly share three key factors: relatively affordable homes, scarce inventory, and a strong job market.

Affordability remains a barrier after the pandemic-era boom as home prices continue to rise and mortgage rates stay high.

Zillow's analysis considers such factors as home construction, the local job market and the percentage of homeownership.

With steep competition to find a home in the new year, these cities offer affordable options for buyers in the housing market.

Buffalo may be known for its colder temperatures, but it also has one of the hottest housing markets in the country.

Zillow says relative affordability and job growth will be the key drivers among the most competitive markets for buyers in 2025.

Zillow currently reports that the strongest housing markets for sellers are in the Northeast. That includes multiple New York cities — Rochester, Syracuse, Buffalo, and New York City — as well as metros in Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. The only non-Northeastern city considered a “strong seller’s market” is San Jose, California.

With steep competition to find a home in the new year, these cities offer affordable options for buyers in the housing market.