When is the best time to buy a house? Many buyers think of springtime. The weather is nice to take a good look at a potential home on the outside, take a walk around the yard, and tour the neighborhood amenities.

Closing on a home in June or July also gives people a chance to transition schools over the summer. There are typically more choices too. April and May often give buyers the most inventory, because many sellers list their homes during that time. When considering the best real estate season, spring certainly makes sense.

The Best Time to Buy a House

Spring is the best answer, for sellers. Unfortunately, it is not always the best answer for buyers.

With everyone thinking ‘spring’ when it comes to real estate, there is more competition on both sides of the table. For sellers, with listings on the rise; there are more homes to compete with. For buyers, it’s harder to make a deal when traffic is good. More buyer traffic means more showings. More showings mean more buyer competition, which can be great for sellers. You hear more about multiple offers in the spring.

Buying a home in the spring means high supply and demand

High supply is great for buyers, but higher demand is not. Fall is often a better season for home buyers because fewer showings mean each visit is valued a little more to a seller.

Sure, there are typically fewer homes on the market in the fall. Many fatigued sellers close their doors in August and hibernate until March. Not every seller wants to wait another year though, and that’s where opportunities can present themselves for a buyer.

Less buyers mean fewer offers, but they still lead to sales. Showings slow down. Demand slows down. Asking prices soften a bit. If a house is on the market during the fall, the owner wants to sell it. They are not testing the market. In the end, they only need one able, willing, and ready buyer.

Buying a home in the fall means decent supply and lower demand

Lower demand means less competition for a home buyer.

I get it, school schedules can be challenging, but they are not as stressful as the holiday season. Not everyone wants to move in the winter, but if fall means stretching the dollar a little further, that saving might be worth it. Who doesn’t like a good deal?

Autumn can be everything home buyers wanted out of spring but didn’t get. In my market here in Austin, there are still a lot of homes to choose from going into fall. My advice to buyers is to get pre-approved, order that pumpkin-spiced latte, and try falling for the autumn real estate season.

When is the best week to buy a house?

Fall may be the best time to buy a house but when is the best week? In Austin, according to Realtor.com it’s September 29 – October 5th.