No Wealth Phase Charts for Micro Markets (County, Zip Code, Neighborhood)

QUESTION:

Are the green "Wealth Phase" sections of State & Metro charts also available for Micro Markets?

ANSWER:

1. Wealth Phase charts do not apply at the ZIP code (or any micro-market) level, because a ZIP is NOT a market unto itself — it's a sub-market that tends to follow its parent Metro ('a rising tide lifts all boats').
2. Micro-markets often have too few home sales for a statistically valid sample, so they can be volatile with larger margins of error. They receive fewer, less frequent updates than Metro markets.
3. Remember you're looking at inflation-adjusted charts, and there was a big inflation spike in 2022/23.
4. There's a longer reporting delay for micro-market stats (vs. the parent Metro) because it takes longer to accumulate an adequate sample.
5. Some micro-markets have such small populations that it can take months to compile enough sale transactions for a valid sample — so expect a larger margin of error and less reliable statistics than a larger market. (That's why we rely primarily on Metro-level data, and only then drill down into micro-markets.)

Because of those small samples and larger margins of error, for micro-markets we look at relative performance (i.e., ranking) versus other nearby micro-markets, for the indicators most relevant to your strategy. On the new platform, do this in the Precision Market Tracker: switch to the ZIP (or County) level and use the Map and The Table to see how your ZIP codes rank against nearby and national markets on the indicators that matter to you — for example Market Outlook, appreciation, or cash flow. Wealth Phase / T.A.P.S. / S.T.A.R. remain on the Metro-level Market Summary Report.