Philadelphia
Median price: $230,000
Foreclosure rate: 1.54%
The biggest housing market handicap for Philadelphia is its old manufacturing economy, which has shed thousands of jobs over the past decade. The unemployment rate has held steady at 8.6% over the past year, and the local economy hasn't been creating new many jobs to absorb those workers.
As a result, population has grown by less than 5% since 2000, barely more than a third of the national average.
Home prices have held fairly steady, hovering in the mid-$200s for the past five years. That has helped the area avoid the worst of the foreclosure crisis. Only one of every 110 homes drew a foreclosure filing in 2010, putting Philadelphia well below the national average of one in 45.
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Last updated January 27 2011: 6:31 PM ET
