Report: Seattle's home values rising twice as fast as SF It's a rough time to be a buyer (or a renter)

Zillow's fastest appreciating U.S. housing markets 5. Orlando Median home value: $209,000 Year-over-year growth: 8.9 percent Zillow's fastest appreciating U.S. housing markets 5. Orlando Median home value: $209,000 Year-over-year growth: 8.9 percent Photo: Giorgio Fochesato, Getty Images Photo: Giorgio Fochesato, Getty Images Image 1 of / 13 Caption Close Report: Seattle's home values rising twice as fast as SF 1 / 13 Back to Gallery

In news that will surprise no one, Seattle has a piping-hot real estate market. But in news that may come as a shock, we’re currently beating out San Francisco to do it.

According to new data from Zillow’s September report, home values in the Seattle metro area are growing twice as fast as those in the San Francisco metro area. The median home value in the Seattle area is now at $455,800, up 12.4 percent over the past year.

Values nationally and in San Francisco both rose at about half the rate of Seattle (6 percent and 6.9 percent, respectively). The home value in San Francisco sits at $865,400.

Though the Bay Area's prices largely swamp Seattle's, this is just one of many reports that sets Seattle's explosive growth as something to watch. Seattle is a sizzling market, something that's starting to reflect on the neighboring metros more and more. And despite some seasonal cool down, Seattle continues to rocket to the top of one real estate report after another.

The Zillow report similarly paints a fairly dismal picture for Seattle home-buyers (or those who hope to become home-buyers). According to the report there are 35.2 percent fewer homes on the market to choose from in the Seattle metro, and it’s the ninth month in a row that Seattle has led the nation in home value appreciation.

And things don’t get much better on the renters side of things: Rents are up 5.5 percent to a median rent payment of $2,189, giving Seattle the second fastest appreciating rental market.

If there’s a silver lining to any of this it comes from the annual Emerging Trends in Real Estate report from PwC, where Seattle was voted the top real estate market in the country by real estate and financial insiders.

The growth of Amazon made the metro an obvious draw, but Seattle also received high marks in cultural spots as well: We’re among the top-rated microbreweries with one per every 19,000 people, 93 percent of residents have a park within walking distance, and Seattle is a top five culinary market (though the report declined to say which number we were).

It’s good to know that Seattle’s fate isn’t wholly tied to Amazon’s hog; there are some other things that will attract nearly 29,000 new residents a year over the next five years, according to PWC.

Click through the slideshow above to see the fastest appreciating housing and rental markets in the country.