Fairbanks, Alaska
Median home price: $211,000
Value lost since 2006: 3.8%
Forecast gain through 2011*: 3.1%
Fairbanks is a boom/bust city at the end of the road in America's Last Frontier. The economy often depends on government -- especially military contracts -- and the volatile oil industry.
The next big project could be a proposed natural gas line that would stretch form the North Slope to Prudhoe Bay and would cost billions to construct.
The area's unemployment rate has remained a bit lower than the national average, 8.3% in December. And wages tend to be high -- as are living expenses.
The city has a rapidly expanding population, putting housing in short supply and contributing to projections of accelerating home price increases over the next couple of years.
NEXT: Anchorage
Last updated June 21 2010: 3:02 PM ET
Source: Fiserv and Moody's Economy.com
* Between September 2009 and September 2011
* Between September 2009 and September 2011
