I read 4 articles from 4 different news sources saying Texas (in Dallas and Houston and suburbs) is the next new real estate frontier. House prices are real low now and so lot of people are moving there and investing there.

The Seattle market is very good right now for appreciation, so is the San Antonio Market as well....

Anyone who professes to know this answer is either a charlatan or a fool. It is an excellent question, the answer to which will only reveal itself in hindsight. If you go back and read old articles of where the next hot real estate area will be (or next hot stock for that matter) you will find that some pundit's predictions are right, and even more are wrong.
You are best off finding a place you want to move to, renting there for a while, if you're not familiar with the area, and then working with a knowledgeable broker to get the best house you can afford. No sense living in a place you don't like, because some"genius" said your home will appreciate 20% a year for the next ten years.
My guess (and it's all a guess) is that real estate, in general ,will return to historic levels of appreciation, between 3-5% a year, with variations depending on the particular market.
Good luck, and if you want to sell your home in City island, give me a call to discuss it, at 718-BRONX-LAND (OR 597-7070) .

Deborah,
Thanks for that great link! I checked it out. At first, I was truly puzzled as to why "Money" magazine's top ten for 2007 and "Cities Ranked and Rated, Second Edition”s top ten for 2007 did not share a single city in common. Especially since "Money" magazine credits Bert Sperling as a consultant/reference for their article and is the creator of "Money”s original "Best Places to Live" list. He also happens to be the co-author of "Cities Ranked and Rated, Second Edition", and has been the "best places" guru for at least 15+ years. He is generally quoted as one of the top expects in the nation on the subject, and Fast Forward, Inc. (the producer of BestPlaces.net) is responsible for more "Best Places" studies and projects than any other single organization since 1985. So, you can imagine the confusion and apprehension I was suffering at the thought of myself citing erroneous information as fact (I know you’re diligent in your research too). Then I delved more deeply into the "Money" web site and found this little tidbit: "This year we focused on smaller places, between 7,500 and 50,000 in population..." Whew! Gainesville, Florida, has a population of 95,400. I then searched online for a reputable link to back up my claim, and even at bestplaces.net, I came up empty. Guess Bert wants to make sure we go out and buy the book... "Cities Ranked and Rated, Second Edition" is published by Frommers, and they aren't handing out any free data either. After hours online googling and downloading large PDFs, the best I can do is provide a link from the "Gainesville Sun" (a regional newspaper) which prominently features an article on the subject. It is attached as a link below.

Move to Buenos Aires Argentina. Prices are extremely cheap, but there is good growth. Cost of living fairly low. Dubai also might be nice.

Hi,
CNN Money Magazine is on the current newstands with their top places to live. I have the print edition of the magazine, but you can find it online at the link below.

Shahid,
How does the Gainesville region of Florida strike you? The city of Gainesville was just ranked #1 (out of 400 cities in the U.S. and Canada) by "Cities Ranked and Rated, Second Edition" in May of 2007. Above Portland, OR (#3)--above Colorado Springs, CO (#4)--above Ann Arbor, MI (#5)--above Asheville, NC (#7)--above Santa Barbara, CA (#11)... I do know of some wonderful investment opportunities... Trulia guidelines prohibit me from attempting to solicit customers on/in this forum; so, for now, I've attached a link to FAR (Florida Association of REALTORs) which is fed by the MLS systems. It isn't very pretty (the interface needs work), but it will show about 90% of available listings throughout the entire state with a reliable amount of accuracy. Feel free to contact me via email (or call) if you'd like further information. Best of luck and happy hunting!

Between 2001 and 2005, NJ has had a 187% appreciation rate, with only a decline of 18%. Depending on what you can afford to spend, you might want to check out some of the neighborhoods there. In Southern Monmouth County, prices have held and the market along the beach is quite strong. In Spring Lake, we have sold 2X the amount of houses thus far in 07 as compared to 06. If you would like to discuss further, contact me offline.