An inside look at local housing markets across the country

Local markets spotlights 5 different areas across the country, showcasing what is uniquely happening in those housing markets. Local real estate agents, loan officers and appraisers share what characteristics are currently defining their housing markets.

Louisville, Kentucky

“It’s wild,” said Elizabeth Monarch, who runs eXp’s Kentucky operation. “It blows my mind.” Monarch is talking about not just a Louisville housing market where prices increased more year-over-year than at any time in her 19 years as a real estate agent (the average Louisville sale is roughly $280,000 a home, Monarch said). She’s also referring to a new group of homebuyers. “I’m dealing with a lot of young people who have invested in cryptocurrency,” Monarch said. These clients have either made money in cryptocurrency and are spending it on a home, the agent explained, or see the rapidly escalating real estate market as another hot investment. “In the south, if you talk crypto, people will look at you like you have 10 heads,” Monarch said. Whatever the currency, Monarch believes “consumer confidence is very strong,” and “people feel very good about spending their money.”