Tops on the survey was Seattle, followed by Houston, San Diego and Portland.

The rankings are based on such factors as vacancy rates, inventory per capita, consumer spending and household growth. Strong consumer spending--an estimated $19,233 per household annually--offsets the Twin Cities' relatively high vacancy rate of 8%. The heavy tourist traffic from the Mall of America--about 40% of the megamall's 43 million visitors each year are tourists who spend double what the locals spend--pumps up those consumer spending numbers.

The Viewpoint report ranks Minneapolis-St. Paul ninth in the country for investing in apartments, down from third last year. But values will soften in some sectors, particularly in hospitality, suburban office and older retail properties, the report says.

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