3 Reasons to Buy a Home This Fall

The leaves are turning colors and the weather is getting crisp, but is the housing market changing with the new season? The pandemic made home buying a challenge for many with intense competition, low supply and skyrocketing home prices. Many found themselves making offers only to be rejected by a pile of higher-than-asking-price bids.

Finally, some relief for house hunters is on the way as the housing market recovers from the impact of the pandemic. According to data collected since 2018 by Realtor.com, the national best time to buy a home this year will be October 3-9. In fact, the DFW-Arlington area aligns with the national metrics and is predicted to have a 12% increase in active listings during this week.

1. Less Competition

Summertime has the highest number of people looking to buy houses, with July as the typical peak month for home buying. This, of course, makes home buying competition stiff. Since the summer rush comes to an end in the fall, the Realtor.com report predicts that during the “best time to buy” in October, the demand is 18% lower than the July peak and 6% lower than the average home buying week.

Less competition creates a more manageable marketplace. During the pandemic, homes in certain zip codes would be listed for sale and go under contract within a matter of days. This meant that some home buyers had to purchase houses sight-unseen or make a quicker decision than usual to beat out the competition. Purchasing a home during the fall can offer some relief to those who need more time to make a buying decision.

2. More Listings

Historically, home inventory peaks in the fall. A recent report from the end of September shows that housing inventory is already up 1.2% week-over-week and up by 42% from the low in April. Based on typical seasonal trends, the week of October 3-9 is expected to have 17.6% more active listings than the beginning of the year.

The pandemic brought in a low number of new listings, but as sellers slowly reentered the market during the summer, new listings have continued to increase, bringing good news for house hunters this season.

3. Home for the Holidays

Timing is everything, and this holds true for settling into a new home in time to make new holiday memories. The holiday season is busy with the hustle and bustle of gift buying, family vacations and work functions, so it makes sense to get settled before the chaos ensues.

You also may want to take advantage of year-end homebuyer tax breaks by purchasing a home during the fall. If you close on a home within the final months of the year, you may be able to deduct items like property taxes and mortgage interest rates. Of course, this all depends on your personal financial situation. 

With the many reasons to hit the housing market during the new season, purchasing your dream home may be the best change you make this fall. The experienced real estate agents at Points West Agency are here to help buyers and sellers through the real estate process during any season of the year. 

 

 Sources:

https://homeguides.sfgate.com/fall-good-time-buy-new-home-72274.html

https://www.realtor.com/research/best-time-to-buy-2021/ 

https://time.com/nextadvisor/mortgages/best-time-to-buy-a-home/

https://www.calculatedriskblog.com/2021/09/housing-inventory-sept-20th-update.html

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