Homeowners in some big-name metros are selling and shipping out faster than the rest of the country, and Texas is right in the thick of it. A new Realtor.com analysis finds Indianapolis, San Antonio and Kansas City at the front of the pack, each with about 45 sales per 1,000 housing units during the 12-month window studied. Four Texas metros land in the top 10 for departures: Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio. Put together, the rankings hint that affordability pressures, fresh inventory and shifting job hubs are quietly rerouting where buyers decide to land.
To build its list, Realtor.com looked at turnover in the 50 largest U.S. metros, using “sales per 1,000 housing units” from September 2024 through August 2025. The top spots went to Indianapolis, San Antonio and Kansas City, followed by Las Vegas, Nashville, Austin, Dallas, Charlotte, Houston and St. Louis. Instead of tracking where people search online, the analysis zeroes in on actual closed sales, giving a concrete snapshot of where owners are actually letting go of their keys.
A separate look from Redfin zooms out to the national stage and finds a very different story. Across the U.S., there were only about 28 sales per 1,000 homes in the first nine months of 2025, which the firm says is the lowest turnover rate in decades. Redfin’s economists chalk much of that slowdown up to owners clutching their ultra-low pandemic-era mortgage rates and buyers pulling back, summing it up with a blunt line: “America’s housing market is defined right now by caution.”
Why Some Cities Are Seeing More Departures
While the national market is barely inching along, some metros are seeing more owners call the movers. Realtor.com points to a familiar culprit: affordability. As home prices and borrowing costs stretch budgets, faster-turnover markets tend to be places where prices feel less out of reach or where new construction has added more options for buyers.
“Affordability remains a primary driver of home searches,” Realtor.com chief economist Danielle Hale said, noting that residents of expensive cities are increasingly scoping out cheaper territory. Those search habits do not always flip into a sale right away, but they highlight where frustrated buyers are starting to aim their next move. For readers who want all the methodology and regional breakouts, the full details are in the company’s report shared via PR Newswire.
Numbers And Local Impact
Higher turnover rarely happens quietly. It usually means more “for sale” signs, more active listings and, eventually, more noticeable price adjustments. The latest figures from Realtor.com also show how different the price landscape looks across the cities topping the departure list.
In Austin, the median list price comes in near $489,859. Dallas clocks in at about $425,000, while Houston sits closer to $358,000. At the more affordable end of the pack, St. Louis is listing homes near $295,900. That spread helps explain why some homeowners are more willing to sell and move while others hang tight, and it shapes which buyers stand to benefit most if inventory keeps building in those higher-churn markets.
Takeaways For Buyers And Sellers
For buyers targeting one of these faster-turnover metros, the environment can translate into more choices and a bit more room to negotiate, especially if new construction is adding to the pile of available homes. For sellers, brisker churn can mean offers arrive sooner, but it also means they may be competing with more listings down the block.
Plenty could still scramble the rankings. A meaningful drop in mortgage rates or a shakeup in local job markets could quickly change which cities have the most owners heading for the exits. For now, though, the balance of affordability, how much inventory builders are bringing online and how picky buyers are feeling appears to be steering the pattern.
