SEATTLE, Feb. 23, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The nation's fastest-growing home values have moved from the typical California markets to Southern markets in Florida, Texas and Tennessee, according to the January Zillow® Real Estate Market Reportsⁱ.

U.S. home values are up 7.2 percent over the past year, to a Zillow Home Value Indexⁱⁱ (ZHVI) of $195,300, with some new growth leaders seeing annual home values leap by double-digits.

Nashville, Portland and Tampa reported the fastest year-over-year home value growth, all appreciating over 10 percent. Orlando, Detroit, Las Vegas and Miami are also among the top 10 fastest appreciating marketsⁱⁱⁱ, a shift away from California dominance. Home values in Nashville were up 9 percent a year ago, but are now rising at more than 12 percent annually, the fastest among the 40 largest U.S. metros. San Francisco and San Jose were both among the top 10 fastest appreciating housing markets at this time last year, but today are among the slowest^iv.

West Coast metros have been among the powerhouse markets driving overall home value growth for the past several years, with new residents flocking to tech-hubs for jobs. However, as the cost of living becomes increasingly expensive, home shoppers are having a hard time finding affordable housing in these areas -- just four of the 10 fastest appreciating housing markets are in the West. Southern markets, like Nashville and Dallas, are desirable for home shoppers in search of job opportunities, reasonably priced homes and an overall good quality of life.

"We spend a lot of time focusing on the West Coast, but power-house markets exist throughout the country," said Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Svenja Gudell. "Florida and Texas home values have grown quite a bit over the past several years, stealing the spotlight from slower moving markets like San Francisco, San Jose and Los Angeles. Slowdowns in the Bay Area, in particular, are driven by the fact that these markets are so expensive that many people can no longer realistically afford to buy there, limiting demand and reducing pressure on home values. Despite recent increases in the national pace of home value appreciation, I expect a nationwide slowdown in 2017 as some headwinds begin blowing in, including increasing mortgage rates and worsening affordability."

Rents across the nation are up 1.4 percent since last January, to a Zillow Rent Index^v (ZRI) of $1,404 per month. Seattle, Portland and Sacramento reported the highest year-over-year rent appreciation among the 40 largest U.S. housing markets. Also among the markets with the fastest appreciating rents are the California markets San Diego and Los Angeles, indicating the shift in places with rapidly rising home values has yet to hit the rental market.

Low inventory continues to be a problem for home shoppers across the country -- there are 3 percent fewer homes to choose from than a year ago, with Minneapolis, Detroit and Cincinnati reporting the greatest drop in inventory among the 40 largest U.S. metros. In Minneapolis there are about 18 percent fewer homes to choose from than a year ago, and 17 percent fewer in Detroit.

Zillow

Zillow® is the leading real estate and rental marketplace dedicated to empowering consumers with data, inspiration and knowledge around the place they call home, and connecting them with the best local professionals who can help. In addition, Zillow operates an industry-leading economics and analytics bureau led by Zillow's Chief Economist Dr. Svenja Gudell. Dr. Gudell and her team of economists and data analysts produce extensive housing data and research covering more than 450 markets at Zillow Real Estate Research. Zillow also sponsors the quarterly Zillow Home Price Expectations Survey, which asks more than 100 leading economists, real estate experts and investment and market strategists to predict the path of the Zillow Home Value Index over the next five years. Zillow also sponsors the bi-annual Zillow Housing Confidence Index (ZHCI) which measures consumer confidence in local housing markets, both currently and over time. Launched in 2006, Zillow is owned and operated by Zillow Group (NASDAQ: Z and ZG), and headquartered in Seattle.

Zillow and Zestimate are registered trademarks of Zillow, Inc.

ⁱ The Zillow Real Estate Market Reports are a monthly overview of the national and local real estate markets. The reports are compiled by Zillow Real Estate Research. For more information, visit www.zillow.com/research/. The data in Zillow's Real Estate Market Reports are aggregated from public sources by a number of data providers for 928 metropolitan and micropolitan areas dating back to 1996. Mortgage and home loan data are typically recorded in each county and publicly available through a county recorder's office. All current monthly data at the national, state, metro, city, ZIP code and neighborhood level can be accessed at www.zillow.com/local-info/ and www.zillow.com/research/data.
ⁱⁱ The Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI) is the median estimated home value for a given geographic area on a given day and includes the value of all single-family residences, condominiums and cooperatives, regardless of whether they sold within a given period. It is expressed in dollars, and seasonally adjusted.
ⁱⁱⁱ Among the 40 largest U.S. housing markets.
^iv Among the slowest in the nation out of the 35 largest U.S. housing markets.
^v The Zillow Rent Index (ZRI) is the median Rent Zestimate® (estimated monthly rental price) for a given geographic area on a given day, and includes the value of all single-family residences, condominiums, cooperatives and apartments in Zillow's database, regardless of whether they are currently listed for rent. It is expressed in dollars.

SOURCE Zillow