When buying a house, the season plays a larger role than you might think in determining the average price. In Texas, your smartest move would be to buy a house in the winter when fewer people are looking to move. But each season has its pros and cons when buying a house, so consider the full picture that these buying seasons bring.
What Is the Best Time of Year to Buy a House in San Antonio?
San Antonio has a population of over one million residents, so there’s quite a demand for living spaces in this bustling city. But what is the best time of the year to purchase a home here?
Let’s break down the year by the four seasons: spring, summer, fall, and winter to determine what would be the best time for your personal budget and schedule. As mentioned, the seasons do make a big difference year-round in determining price and availability.
Buying a House in Spring
With the long-awaited arrival of spring, buying a home during this time is a hot time in the market. The homes are available in supply, but keep in mind that the demand is high. So if you’re up for a bidding war, spring is the season to buy your home.
Spring is considered one of the best times, if not the time, to buy a home. It’s in between the low prices and inventory of the winter season, as well as the high prices and booming market of summertime. If you want to find the best possible deal, it’ll most likely be during spring.
Buying a House in Summer
Summer is another busy season to buy a home, but you’ll get the best deal near the winding down period of this season. For example, instead of buying in June, try waiting it out until August. But you’ve still got to be quick to get in on the best deals.
Speaking about deals, because this season is popular to purchase homes, you must make sure that you are serious about your offer. The seller isn’t going to go for lightweight offers when it’s their busiest time to make profits. As they say, go big or go home.
Plus, if you’re already a homeowner and plan to move, summer is the perfect time to sell your home and buy a new one. Because the market is hot, you can coordinate selling and buying.
Buying a House in Fall
With the end of the hot buying season in summer, fall brings lower home prices. Although, this does also mean that availability is low after most homes get bought up in summer. In the fall, sellers are motivated to sell off what they have left. So they’re willing to negotiate more in order to seal the deal. This is an ideal time if you’re on a budget and don’t mind the low availability of potential homes.
Many people prefer to buy in the fall because they like to settle down into the holiday season after buying a house. Which makes sense; it’s nice to get acquainted with your new home before the stress brought on by the holidays.
Buying a House in Winter
When the first cold chill comes rolling in, sellers know that potential buyers are few and far between. But when an offer comes through, sellers are ready to sell as soon as they can. This makes the closing offer much quicker, as lenders have fewer applications to go through and real estate agents and inspectors are much more available.
It’s also the cheapest time of the year to buy a home, so if you don’t mind a smaller selection, winter could be the perfect time for you to make an offer.
Another factor to consider when looking at homes during this season is how the homes themselves look on the outside. Even in a state like Texas, where snow is mostly scarce during the winter, the shorter days with less natural light can have an impact.
A home may look bleak during winter when there aren't any lush green trees or bright sunlight to give it life. But in the spring, the home might have a gorgeous floral environment that brings its aesthetic up a few notches.
So keep in mind that if you’re willing to look at homes in the winter, you might not be blown away by the outside as much as you would in the brighter seasons. Also, inspectors probably aren’t going to run the air conditioning when it’s chilly outside so you will have to ask to make sure the AC unit is in working order before making your offer.
What Is the Best Month to Buy a House
If you can handle the cold, you’re in luck because the best months to buy a house in Texas are during the later fall into winter. But what if we watered that down to specific days of the month that are your best chances out of the entire year for getting your dream home?
Look no further, because the best month and day out of them all is December 26. That’s right, the day after Christmas gives you the greatest chance of getting the best deal. Okay, but why?
Because the vast majority of people aren’t looking to move around the holidays. Do you know of anyone who bought their home before or after the chilly holiday season? Exactly, so play your cards right by waiting around until the end of the year to purchase.
Other great dates include October 12th, November 9, and December 4th, 7th, and 29th.
Is There a Cheapest Month to Buy a House?
Being on a strict budget may an issue if you’re looking to purchase a home. Or if you’re just looking for the most affordable deal to save your wallet, look for homes during December and January. The market typically goes cold during the winter months, since fewer people are looking to buy homes and move during winter.
But keep in mind that there will also be fewer houses for sale, so you will be limited to the extent to which homes are available to purchase. These limitations could be size, amount of extra space, or interesting features.
If you're willing to work with a limited pool of potential homes the winter months might be your best bet!
What Is the Best Week to Buy a House?
There is one week out of the whole year that is the most favorable for potential buyers, where sellers are more willing to drop prices and negotiate. Plus, there’s less competition with school starting up, so the availability is higher. You may have guessed it, this week is in the fall! If you’re ready to house hunt like a pro, do it during the week of September 22-28.
What Are the Best Days to Buy a House?
Before you call off work on a random day so you can check out a home for sale, consider that there are specific days that may be better than others on price. Don’t think 24 hours can make a big impact? Think again. For example, Monday is the best day of the week to seal a deal on a house because buyers can get discounts at around 2.3% below market value.
If Monday isn’t your jam, we get it. You’re in luck because the next best day to purchase a home is Friday! This can bring discounts averaging 2% below market value.
So if you’re planning to buy a home, make sure to close the deal on a Monday or Friday to ensure the best headstart into your new life as a homeowner.
What Is the Worst Time to Buy a House?
The worst time to make a purchase on a home is during spring and early summer. Especially avoid the month of June, if you can, for becoming a new homeowner. This is because homes are typically getting taken off the market at a rapid rate in June, making it challenging for you to find a good deal. You’ll also pay a higher premium.
When it comes to the worst days to buy a house, avoid the middle of the week. For example, on Thursdays, that buyer discount we mentioned earlier will only be about 1% compared to the discounts on other days of the week.
Tips for Finding a Great Deal in San Antonio
Now that we’ve covered the basics of finding the best deal on your time, we can dig into the specifics about getting the best deal in San Antonio. Not only are the neighborhoods picturesque and beautiful in this city, but residents say that they’re full of the friendliest neighbors. So if finding a tight-knit community is what you’re looking for in buying a home, San Antonio has you covered. Here are our best tips for finding your ideal home.
Partner Up With a Local Real Estate Agent
There’s nothing better than supporting local businesses, so why not extend that favor to your local real estate agent? They’ll know the area well, and they'll also know the ins and outs to get the best options for you.
They’ll know the best streets to live on, such as the street with the friendliest neighbors or the street that remains quiet all night long. Plus, your local real estate agent can offer you personal insights unique to the area where you’re looking to buy a house.
If you’re not sure where to look first for a real estate agent, ask around. Do you have a friend in the area that could recommend their agent to you? You could also ask for suggestions on social media! A reliable agent might just see your post and contact you.
Don’t just go to your internet browser and call it a day: dig deeper and ask the people around you for suggestions. You are guaranteed to find a better agent through your connections than randomly choosing one online because their website looked fantastic.
Another tip to find the best real estate agent for you includes asking real estate agents in your area about how long they’ve been in the business. This step can prevent a lot of possible issues later on with an individual agent’s level of experience compared to how challenging they may find your specific needs.
Find Your Needs and Create Goals
Not sure which street you want to live on in your chosen neighborhood? Your local real estate agent will be able to consider your ideal living space, such as a quiet area to raise a family, and find streets that suit those exact needs.
Want to live close to the nearby school that your future children will be attending? Set goals according to your needs to help your agent find potential homes that match your vision. They can assess those needs and set you up for success.
Another tip is to never settle for less. Be open with your local real estate agent if none of the options on their list match up with what you had in mind. If you don’t let them know, they will keep suggesting homes that don’t align with your ideal vision.
Your next steps are saving up for a down payment, creating good credit, and eliminating debt. Some tips with these not-so-exciting to-do’s include cutting down on expenses, putting your money into a savings account (or an investment account), and saving what money you can.
Don’t get discouraged when beginning to save up for a down payment and continue with the other steps above. These things take time, depending on your income and how well you can save money to put away.
Small steps have big pay-offs, so start by going over your bank statement and calculating how much money you spend in a month. Cut down on unnecessary costs, like subscription services (bye, Netflix!) or your daily $5 latte. This will also help with eliminating your current debts because then you’ll have extra money to put towards becoming debt-free.
Secure a Lender and Financing
The most crucial step is to pre-qualify for a mortgage. For buyers specifically in Texas, the biggest factor is the interest rate. Do some research on potential lenders and make comparisons to ensure the best deal for you.
When it comes to a down payment, most lenders like to see at least 20% down. This shows a reliable income and reflects well on you as a saver, not a spender.
Negotiate Your Best Price
When it comes to negotiating, don’t sweat it if you’re not up-to-date with the inner workings of the local market. That’s what your real estate agent is for, so they’ll be able to find the right price for you to offer without breaking your budget.
Need some negotiating advice? We can break it down into a few simple steps. First, research homes in the area you’re looking at. Check out the sale prices, right down to the final negotiated price for recently sold homes to get an idea of the final price range other buyers have put down.
Second, get a home inspection if you’ve got your heart set on a property in particular. Your mortgage lender probably won’t see it as a necessity, but it will save you time and money in the long run.
After all, you don’t want to invest in a home that already has issues. These could be from leaky pipes to cracks in the wall to any other problem that can come along when owning a home. So to avoid these issues right off the bat, you can ensure prevention by getting the home inspected.
Third, have your finances in line. Just like the aforementioned advice about saving up for a down payment, make sure you can go through with your negotiation. A great way to do this is to get pre-qualified for a loan with your mortgage lender ahead of time.
When it comes to buying a home, especially for the first time, it’s important to follow the advice above to get the best deal on your new home. When you’re prepared with the knowledge of which neighborhood you’d like to live in, as well as what you’re looking for in a home, you can save yourself valuable time during the lengthy process.
There are many ins and outs of the local market, so once you're ready you can find the best real estate agent for your needs and goals.
The best thing you can do to prepare to buy a home this year, or any year after, is to set your schedule to the tips above in order to find the best day, month, or season to buy your home. Ready to get started with home buying? Start your search at BHGRE HomeCity!
