I thought it would be cool to create a map that displays state-level housing price appreciation during the last five years. Check it out:

The graphic was created using a map creator tool at: http://monarch.tamu.edu/~maps2/us.htm, and the data come from OFHEO.

In the last five years, home price appreciation in the US has gone totally gang-busters. Average prices have more than doubled in California, Florida, Hawaii, Nevada, Maryland, and Washington DC. The hot areas are concentrated in the northeast and the west.

It has been a pretty amazing ride for people owning houses in these areas. I hope for their sake the prices can hold.

From an investor point of view, I think it makes sense to look for areas with good growth prospects that have not gone through such a dramatic price surge. For the next 3-5 years, I like Texas, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Ohio, and Michigan.

Anyway, I just thought this was cool. I wish I could fast-forward time a little bit to see how housing develops. But I guess we’ll just have to wait and see!