When Looking For a Home
When looking to purchase a home, spring is a great time to start looking, as it is usually when more and more homes are being put on the market for sale. In fact, May is considered the strongest month of the year for people to sell a home. The housing market in general tends to fluctuate between a buyer’s market and a seller’s market, but in the spring there’s no shortage of home options to consider when looking.
But why is spring the springboard (pun intended) for this increase in homes for sale? One main reason is warmer, more comfortable weather makes buyers much more active. The housing market is usually in a stronger position at this time. There are plenty of buyers looking to purchase, which real estate agents are aware of, passing along that information to their clients to list their homes as quickly as possible. The spring weather also allows buyers (and sellers) to get a head start on their new home journeys, as sometimes the sales and closing process can take a while to complete. And with longer days on the horizon as a result of daylight savings time, buyers have more time to view homes while it’s still light out.
In warmer weather states, there are similar buying and selling patterns that exist, believe it or not. With many people needing to focus on work, holidays and family obligations towards the end of summer, the new school year in the fall, older children going off to college, etc., more homes tend to come off the market, sometimes temporarily. On the flip side, buyers tend to slow down the process of checking out new listings as well.
It should also be noted that not every home listed for sale in the spring will sell, which can offer a great opportunity for a home buyer to purchase a home at a discount – but this can be a risky gamble if the home you fell in love with in the spring is sold while you were waiting for a potential fall/winter price reduction. So be vigilant in your home buying strategy, and definitely utilize your real estate agent for advice. Happy home hunting!