When is the best time to buy a home?

Posted by Dan Miller, REALTOR on Monday, December 8th, 2014 at 5:40am.

When is the best time to buy a home in Madison? Conventional wisdom says to buy in the springtime. Year in and year out our local real estate market is busiest during the warmer months and slowest during the winter holiday season. There are many in the real estate industry who refer to this time of year as the "REALTOR Holiday", which runs unofficially from Thanksgiving Day through New Year's Day. 

The spring and summer months are the most popular times for buying in our market, but there can be some challenges that come with buying during the peak season. Shopping in the spring or summer market means you're competing with many other buyers at a time when homes are selling very quickly. If you don't act quickly yourself, you could lose your ideal property to another buyer. Or, if you do get your offer accepted, you could find yourself in a competitive bidding situation where you end up paying more than you anticipated.  

Holiday Shopping for Your Madison Home

If you're looking to buy in a less competitive environment and for a lower market price, you might consider buying your home right now. The graph below, which shows accepted offers in Madison by month, tells the story. In a nutshell buyer activity is lowest in December and highest in April and May. 

The data shows buyer activity is about 275% more in April and May than it is in December. In other words your competition from other buyers is 275% higher in April and May compared to right now. You have more listings to choose from in April and May, but there are many more competing buyers to contend with during the spring season. 

Madison Accepted Offers By Month

Seller Motivation During the Holidays

Although conventional wisdom says otherwise, right now is an excellent time to buy a home. Many sellers become more flexible during the holiday season. There's a motivated group of sellers out there that's willing to do what it takes to get their listing sold. They've watched their properties sit on the market through the peak buying season. Now their showing activity has dropped off considerably, so they've lowered their price in order to sell as quickly as possible. The net result for many December buyers is a less-competitive environment and a better market price - two excellent reasons to buy a home right now. It's a buyer's market in December, but the market will shift in favor of sellers again very soon. 

Do you have questions about buying a home in Madison?

Contact us online to schedule a short consultation. We'll listen to your needs and put a plan in place that helps you achieve your real estate goals. 

This article is published courtesy of:
Dan Miller, REALTOR
Mad City Dream Homes & RE/MAX Preferred
1619 Monroe Street #1, Madison, WI, 53711

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