Maybe, maybe not. Trendy area home prices may appreciate faster than those less-trendy areas. "Location, location, location." I missed out on a lot of appreciation, buying a cheap $90K condo, when I could have bought a $375 house. I could have made ~$400K in just 5 years, rather than $110K.
Yep. We bought in a more desirable area than I was initially looking and property values went up far more in the time we were there.