Hi there,
Queensville here with another post, this time about buying a home in the fall.
Now, summer is well known to be the hottest season for the housing market. It’s a crazy time for both buyers and sellers, with everyone looking to get a deal and move, or move property, before the weather and the market both start to cool.
Prospective summertime buyers may easily find themselves being outbid on every home that catches their eye, or be left with nothing but the suspiciously too-good-to-be-true property that anyone with a good home inspector and a lick of sense knows to avoid like the black mold it’s likely full of.
But while this kind of a market is great for sellers, for those of us who can’t find our dream home in the summer months, it’s obviously not ideal. But once the peak housing market time has passed, the market opens up in surprising ways, and there are a number of surprising opportunities for savvy home-buyers who are willing to hold off until the off-season.
Here are my top 3 tips:
1. Fall is a buyer’s market
Since the peak selling season is during the spring and summer, anyone who is selling their home in the fall isn’t willing to wait another year before selling their home. That means that only the serious sellers remain on the market, and they are more likely to be willing to negotiate on prices, and they may be willing to sell quickly, before the holidays and the end of the year. Many sellers have also been trying to sell their homes for a while. They may have lowered their asking price recently, or they may be more willing to negotiate in order to finally cut a process that has been dragging on for a long time short. Buyers are more likely to find flexibility in everything from price, to closing costs, to move-in dates when they look for a home during the fall.
2. Fall is an unpleasant time of year
Fall being rainy and cold and generally unpleasant doesn’t sound like a good thing, but if you think about it, it’s really a blessing in disguise. Homes certainly show better in the summer months, when the weather is mostly sunny and beautiful, but that’s a bonus for sellers, not buyers. Buyers should want to see what their potential future home is going to look like at its worst as well as its best. After all, unless you’re looking for a summer home you aren’t only going to live there when the weather is lovely. Seeing a home when it’s cold and rainy out gives potential buyers - and their home inspectors - the chance to discover any unpleasant drafts or leaks before they buy, rather than a few months down the line when they have to shell out the cash to fix the problem themselves.
3. Fall is the off-season for everyone in the housing industry
Since fall is the off-season for everyone in the housing industry, including your real estate agent, you can monopolize their time as much as you want, and enjoy being the centre of their attention. You can also take your time when considering properties, stress less, and enjoy more flexibility in finding and booking other housing professionals such as home inspectors, movers, painters and handymen. And if you’re looking to buy a home that needs some upgrading, you may be able to get a good deal on everything from paint to appliances in the fall and winter months, when everything starts going on sale.
The most important thing is to consider all your options, move at your own pace, and keep looking until you find the home of your dreams, no matter when you decide to start looking for a home - even though I think Queensville is the best, obviously. I really am trying to be neutral as I offer you my advice, but Queensville is just so lovely, I can’t help but tell you, and our presentation centre will, of course, be open all through the fall season. But no matter where you decide to look, if the slower pace offered by the fall buying season gives you that freedom you’re looking for, then it’s the right time to buy for you.
Talk soon,
Queensville