Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land vs Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News: Housing Market Comparison (2026)

Side-by-side Alpha Scores, affordability, momentum, supply, jobs, and rental yield · as of May 2026

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land vs Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News side by side

Metric Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News
Alpha Score3536
Price Momentum5050
Inventory Health04
Affordability3523
Economic Strength4061
Rental Yield6452
Median Sale Price
Price-to-Income3.44.0
Payment-to-Income21.0%24.2%
Months of Supply
Gross Rental Yield6.0%5.3%
Overvaluation Index010

Highlighted = the stronger read for that metric (supply, valuation, and payment burden are better when lower). Income/rent inputs lag annually.

How Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land and Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News compare, dimension by dimension

  • Affordability: Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land leads — Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land 35/100 vs Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News 23/100.
  • Price Momentum: Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land and Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News score the same (50/100).
  • Inventory Health: Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News leads — Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land 0/100 vs Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News 4/100.
  • Economic Strength: Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News leads — Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land 40/100 vs Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News 61/100.
  • Rental Yield: Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land leads — Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land 64/100 vs Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News 52/100.

Frequently asked questions

Which has a higher Alpha Score, Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land or Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News?

Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News scores higher — 36 vs 35 out of 100. The Alpha Score is a 0-100 composite of price momentum, inventory health, affordability, economic strength, and rental yield.

Is Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land or Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News more affordable?

Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land is more affordable on our affordability dimension. Price-to-income is 3.4 in Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land and 4.0 in Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News.

Which housing market has stronger momentum, Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land or Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News?

Both markets show similar price momentum (about 50/100).

Want to swap in other cities, change the metrics, or chart the trend over time? Customize this comparison → in the interactive Compare tool. Or read the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land market brief and the Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News brief.