Listings in Peabody, Massachusetts, drew 4.1 times the national average number of views in the first half of 2026, and a typical home sat on the market for just 20 days. That was enough to make the ZIP code 01960 the hottest in the country, according to Realtor.com’s annual ranking.
Peabody, a city of nearly 56,000 people about 20 miles north of Boston, takes the top spot a year after its North Shore neighbor Beverly held it. This is the third time Peabody has appeared on the list, after top-10 finishes in 2018 and 2021.
How the ranking works
Realtor.com scores buyer interest on two measures: demand, counted as unique viewers per listing, and pace, meaning how many days a typical listing stays active on the site. Listings in the ten hottest ZIP codes got between three and 5.3 times the national average of views per property. They sold 30 to 42 days faster than the national norm of 60 days on the market. Realtor.com declined to give the national average view count. The list allows one ZIP code per metro area.
The Northeast and Midwest dominated. Montclair and Sewell, New Jersey, took second and third, followed by Fairport, New York, and Westfield, Massachusetts. Livonia, Michigan; Lititz, Pennsylvania; North Haven, Connecticut; New Berlin, Wisconsin; and Wheaton, Illinois, filled out the top ten. Many of the winners sit within commuting distance of a big city. Montclair is about 15 miles from Midtown Manhattan and Sewell roughly 20 miles from Philadelphia.
Who is buying in Peabody
The city’s median listing price reached $667,000 in June. That is more than $230,000 above the national figure and still under the $825,000 median for the Boston metro. Homes sold for an average of 0.07% below asking, against 2.3% below nationally. Another local outlet put the median price at $600,000.
About 70% of listing views came from the Boston area. “Buyers are drawn to Peabody by its highway access to Boston, its North Shore setting, and its blend of small-town character with proximity to a major job center,” Realtor.com wrote in its report.
The median household income in the ZIP code is $101,454. The typical buyer put down about 14%, roughly $89,000, and had a median FICO score of 747, close to the national median. Across the ten hottest ZIP codes, buyers looked stronger on paper: an average down payment of 19.4% against 13.1% nationally, and a median FICO score of 766.
Sources
- This North Shore city was Realtor.com’s hottest ZIP code in 2026
- Massachusetts City Named "Hottest" Zip Code in the United States
