According to many experts in housing and economics there will be a few place in the next coming years where buying real estate is a good investment, and Charleston, South Carolina is one of them. Read the recent article by MSN.

Home prices of course, are variable and depend on many factors, each of which is difficult to predict. Still, average home prices will drop by 7.9% nationwide in 2010, according to Moody’s Economy.com. In the few areas where there could be positive price growth, the projected increase is modest. “These areas will essentially be flat next year,” says Steve Cochrane, managing director at Moody’s Economy.com.

The top 5 cities for home prices

1. Tacoma, Wash. (+2.44%)
2. Memphis, Tenn. (+0.99%)
3. Pittsburgh (+0.89%)
4. Charleston, S.C. (+0.18%)
5. Seattle (-0.50%)

Smaller areas across the Southeast are expected to fare well in 2010 primarily because they fared relatively decently during the housing crisis, says Jeannine Cataldi, a senior economist at IHS Global Insight. “They didn’t have such a big run-up, and they have a diverse economic base that enabled them to stay stable,” she says. Home prices in Charleston, South Carolina didn’t get out of line with household incomes; also, Boeing is investing in a fairly large manufacturing plant there, which could create some potential for income and job growth, says Cochrane.

In short; these pockets of the country share a few important characteristics. One is that they are starting with a limited supply of housing stock. Another is that throughout most of the decade, prices basically stayed in sync with household income, says Cochrane.