18-Hour City

An 18-hour city is a second-tier city with higher-than-average urban population growth and featuring a lower cost of living and lower cost of doing business than first-tier cities. In real estate investing, 18-hour cities are seen as viable investment alternatives to the big six markets of Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. — most of which are often dubbed 24-hour cities.