Fall into Savings:
Advantages of Buying a Home in the Fall
As autumn arrives, you can look forward to dropping temperatures and home prices, making it a great season to buy a home.
Texas remains a strong real estate market. Better affordability and a lower housing shortage than national trends helped two Texas metro areas land on the National Association of Realtors’ ranking of the 10 best cities to buy a home, which highlighted Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington at No. 3 and San Antonio-New Braunfels at No. 9.1
Meanwhile, for the first time since 2019, Texas A&M University’s Texas Real Estate Research Center reports that the housing market in Texas is returning to normal seasonal trends.2
Spring and summer are traditionally the most expensive times to buy a home, particularly in June and July right after school lets out for the season. But if you’ve decided to wait until later in the year to buy, there may be advantages to entering the fall real estate market.
Top 6 reasons to buy a home in the fall
1. Less competition
After the busy spring selling season, home sales tend to drop off in the fall.3 This means fewer buyers are competing for the same properties, which can give them more negotiating power.
2. More time to buy
If you’re not trying to secure a new home before the start of a school year in competition with other eager buyers, you may have more time to carefully consider each property. Did you know that overspending and rushing the homebuying process are among the top reasons for buyer’s remorse?4 Meanwhile, the slower realty season may mean faster processing for your mortgage application and an easier time scheduling a home inspection.
3. Possible price cuts
Depending upon your target neighborhoods, sellers may be more willing to drop prices on homes that have been on the market for some time. A knowledgeable real estate agent can let you know what to expect in your market. Curious about why a home has been listed for a while? Reasons may include:
- The home is overpriced.
- Recent life changes or extenuating circumstances for the seller.
- A buyer fell through.
- The seller needed to make upgrades.
- Interest rates were not as favorable earlier in the year.
Of course, when it comes to learning why a particular house or condominium may have been on the market a long time, a knowledgeable realty agent can be a valuable resource to buyers. The information they can pull together from their contacts and resources can help you decide if a property is worth the investment.
4. Potential tax benefits
Some sellers may be motivated to sell a home before the end of the year to take advantage of a tax write-off on capital gains.5 Meanwhile, if you close on your new home before the end of the year, you may be able to deduct certain expenses on your upcoming tax return.6
For buyers, possible real estate deductions may include:
- Mortgage interest payments
- Property taxes
- Mortgage points
- Energy-efficient home improvements
5. More favorable mortgage rates
Mortgage rates tend to fluctuate throughout the year. Historically, those rates have dropped in the fall — although they’ve been more volatile than usual lately. FreddieMac has a Primary Market Mortgage Survey for reference, with historical U.S. weekly averages that date back to 1971.7 Lower mortgage rates will allow your money to stretch farther when purchasing a home.
6. More time to settle in before the holidays
Moving between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day can be stressful. By making a purchase earlier in the fall, you may have more time to get acclimated to your new home before the holiday rush. And what fun it will be to deck the halls and celebrate the season in your new home! Plus, you can add new appliances, furniture or home accents to your holiday wish list so family and friends can gift you something you’ll love.
As you can see, there are many benefits to buying a home in the fall. Do keep in mind, however, that every real estate market is different — even within Central Texas — so it's important to work with a knowledgeable real estate agent who can provide insights into the local market conditions and help you navigate the homebuying process.
Are you planning to sell or buy a Central Texas property soon? Remember that RBFCU’s preferred real estate partner, Kuper Sotheby’s International Realty, is here to help you move beyond your expectations toward an extraordinary real estate experience.
To get started, contact us today by emailing realty@rbfcu.org or completing a simple online form now.
Information in this article is general in nature and for your consideration, not as financial advice. Please contact your own financial professionals regarding your specific needs before taking any action based upon this information.
Last updated August 2023.
Disclosures:
Kuper Realty Holding Company, LLC dba Kuper Sotheby’s International Realty is a subsidiary of RBFCU Services LLC. RBFCU Services LLC is affiliated with Randolph‑Brooks Federal Credit Union (RBFCU)
Sources:
The following sources were last accessed May 2023.
1“On The Horizon: Markets to Watch in 2023 and Beyond.” National Association of Realtors (NAR), http://www.nar.realtor/magazine/real-estate-news/10-housing-markets-expected-to-lead-the-nation-in-2023.
2“Texas Housing Insight.” Texas A&M University, Texas Real Estate Research Center, 19 April 2023, http://ww.recenter.tamu.edu/articles/technical-report/Texas-Housing-Insight.
3National Association of Realtors. 2 January 2019. Seasonality in the Housing Market. Retrieved from: https://www.nar.realtor/blogs/economists-outlook/seasonality-in-the-housing-market.
4“Buyer’s Remorse is Rampant among Pandemic Purchasers.” National Association of Realtors (NAR), 23 January 2023, http://www.nar.realtor/magazine/real-estate-news/sales-marketing/buyers-remorse-is-rampant-among-pandemic-purchasers.
5“Topic No. 701 Sale of Your Home | Internal Revenue Service.” IRS.gov, https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc701.
6“Publication 530 (2022), Tax Information for Homeowners | Internal Revenue Service.” IRS.gov, https://www.irs.gov/publications/p530#en_US_2021_publink100011838.
7“Mortgage Rates.” FreddieMac.com, 2022, https://www.freddiemac.com/pmms.
Federally Insured by NCUA. Equal Housing Lender.
