As housing affordability continues to challenge the market and overall shopper activity softens, understanding where prospective buyers are actively engaging becomes increasingly valuable for home building professionals.
Zonda’s latest Homebuyer Outlook shows Houston led major markets for new-home shopper conversions in Q3 2026. Atlanta ranked second, while Riverside rounded out the top three. Atlanta’s performance was particularly notable since the market came in seventh place in Q2 2026.
The results come from Zonda’s proprietary Conversion Index, which gives builders another way to assess buyer interest beyond traffic alone. The index measures the ratio of online shopper clicks to community tour requests on NewHomeSource.com, helping capture the point at which shoppers move beyond researching homes and toward engaging with a community.
While high levels of online shopping can indicate interest in a market, conversions show where consumers are taking a more meaningful action.
That distinction becomes especially useful in a slower demand environment. It also provides another perspective since online shopper activity softened but several markets recorded stronger conversion readings than in the previous quarter. That makes conversion a useful complement to traditional measures of demand.
The insights in this article were taken from more in-depth research reports published in Zonda’s Homebuyer Outlook subscription.
