Location, location, location” might be the catchphrase of the real-estate profession, but it applies just as much to realtors as it does to their clients. After all, success in the industry hinges on both an agent’s work ethic and area of operation.

Last year’s real estate market was very healthy, with 5.57 million sales of existing homes, the best year for the industry since 2006. And we predict that trend will continue into 2018. But even as the market changes as a whole, certain cities remain hotspots. In the coming year, real-estate agents may want to relocate to places with the highest demand for housing, and that pay the best for their expert guidance.

To determine the best markets for this particular profession, WalletHub compared more than 170 U.S. cities across 18 key indicators of a healthy real-estate environment. Our data set ranges from sales per agent to annual median wage for real-estate agents to housing-market health index. Read on for our findings, advice and insight from experts, and a full description of our methodology.

Methodology
In order to determine the best cities for real-estate agents, WalletHub compared 179 cities — including the 150 most populated U.S. cities, plus at least two of the most populated cities in each state — across two key dimensions “Job Opportunity & Competition” and “Real-Estate Market Health.” Our sample considers only city proper in each case and excludes cities in the surrounding metro area.

We evaluated the two dimensions using 18 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with 100 representing the most favorable conditions for real-estate agents. Data for the metrics marked with an asterisk (*) were available at the state level only.

We then determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its total score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

Job Opportunity & Competition – Total Points: 60

• Sales per Agent: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Median Home Price: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Monthly Average Starting Salary for Real-Estate Agents: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Annual Median Wage for Real-Estate Agents: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Real-Estate Employment Attractiveness: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Real-Estate Employment Growth (2014–2016): Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Annual Median Wage Growth for Real-Estate Jobs (2014–2016): Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Unemployment Rate: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Projected Real-Estate Jobs Needed by 2024 per Capita*: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)
• Google Search Index for “Real Estate Agents”: Full Weight (~6.00 Points)

Real-Estate Market Health – Total Points: 40

• Home Turnover Rate: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Housing-Market Health Index: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Zillow Home Value 1-Year Forecast: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Days on Market: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Average Ratio of Home Sale Price to Home List Price: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Building-Permit Activity: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• Share of Home Flips: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)
• WalletHub “Fastest Growing Cities” Rank: Full Weight (~5.00 Points)