Tom Kalinski, RE/MAX of Boulder
BOULDER – After a summer of rising home prices, here’s some good news for buyers. If you can choose the month in which you buy your next home, it could save you thousands of dollars.
That month would be in the fall or winter, according to a recent study by NerdWallet.com.
Home sale prices – the amount buyers actually pay for a home – are highest during the peak home shopping months of June and July.
Come fall, home sale prices fall.
Across the 50 metro areas analyzed by nerdwallet.com, prices dip by 2.96 percent on average. The findings are based on analysis of sales and listing over the past two years in the 50 largest metros using Realtor.com® data.
That nearly 3 percent decline results in a decrease of $8,300 on the median home from summer (June through August) to fall (September through November). Boulder’s neighboring Denver-Aurora-Lakewood is reported to decrease by 2 percent.
Winter puts the biggest chill on home sale prices. Usually, January and February sale prices dip to 8.45 less on average than the summer months.
“If your circumstances give you the freedom to be able to choose the best time to look to sign a contract on a new home, there’s no question that the market dynamics favor you the most to do that in the dead of winter, ideally in January or February, right before the activity starts to heat up,” says Jonathan Smoke, chief economist for Realtor.com®.
There are additional disadvantages to summer buying. In addition to home sales prices peaking in June and July, many buyers prefer to make a move when school is out for summer. That means competition from other buyers is highest then, too.
But, summer home shoppers have one big advantage: typically, more homes are available for sale resulting in more homes to choose from, according to the analysis.
Even so, if buyers have the flexibility to choose when to buy a home, buying in the off-peak months can add up to thousands of dollars in savings. So when those autumn colors blaze, think about more than football and pumpkins. Think home buying for less.
For the full report visit nerdwallet.com/blog/mortgages/home-buying-season.
Tom Kalinski is the Owner and Founder of RE/MAX of Boulder. To reach him call 303.441.5620 or e-mail [email protected].
By Tom Kalinski, RE/MAX of Boulder
