FORBES' annual list of America's Most Expensive Zip Codes is compiled with the help of Altos Research, a Mountain View, Calif.-based real-time real estate data firm.
For this ranking, Altos calculated the median home prices of more than 22,000 U.S. ZIP codes, based off of listing data for single family houses and condos. Prices were weighted according to the mix of local property types. We did not include co-ops (which may have pushed some of the fancier ZIP codes near Central Park in Manhattan lower on our list).
We also limited the search to ZIP codes where 10 or more residences were listed for sale, including short sales and bank-owned foreclosures on the market. Homes bundled into REO bulk sales were excluded.
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To smooth out any wrinkles caused by a week’s unusual activity (like, say, an expensive home coming to market in an area where luxury properties are rare), Altos used a rolling average for the 90-day period.
Since our list is based on asking prices rather than closed sales or tax assessments, it may not be completely representative of the communities featured — for example, neighborhoods that have become swanky in the past few decades could contain pockets of longtime residents in more modest homes. Rather, our list is a snapshot of each market’s current housing activity.
“This is a view of everything actively for sale in these markets,” says Michael Simonsen, chief executive of Altos Research. “It's the experience you'll have if you want to buy -- or sell -- a home today in any of them.”
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