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What is the best time of year to buy a house?

Yahoo Personal Finance· Getty Images
Updated 5 min read

You don't always get to choose when you need — or really want — to buy a house. A new job, a new baby, and a new life plan can all be reasons to get a new place.

But if you're an optimizer, someone who wants to make the best, most efficient decisions leading up to homeownership, then here is a breakdown of the best time of year to buy a house.

In this article:

Dig deeper: Is now a good time to buy a house?

Spring is the traditional home-buying season. The real estate market heats up as the winter chill fades and warm weather returns. In fact, in some housing markets, the buying season begins right after the Super Bowl.

Early spring is the perfect time for parents with children to plan and initiate the months-long process of buying a house, perhaps selling an existing home, and moving.

In 2024, Realtor.com found that mid-April was the best time for a home seller to list their house. The week of April 14 to 20 was specifically pinpointed after researching five years of data, excluding the pandemic year of 2020. The peak sales week was chosen because of above-average buyer demand, less-than-average inventory, faster home sales, and higher median listing prices.

If spring, specifically April, is a good time to sell a home, it may also be a good time to buy. However, you don't want to overpay for a house selling at the top of a seasonal trend.

Spring is also prime open house season.

Learn more: How long does it take to buy a house?

The summer months are when the inventory of houses for sale is at its highest, according to Realtor.com. Of course, there is also more buyer competition as parents look to make a move during the break in the school year.

Last year, Realtor.com said the best time to buy a home was at the beginning of October, specifically the 1st through the 7th. While such exact timing may or may not be the case this year, early fall typically sees ample listings and slower buyer demand, resulting in slightly lower prices.

Read more: Why are house prices so high?

With fewer buyers in the market, there's less house-hunting competition in the winter. But yeah, it's winter. Snow and ice may be a factor in parts of the country. It could be harder to find the perfect house while shopping in less-than-perfect weather conditions. And homes for sale at this time of the year may be leftovers from the prior prime selling seasons. But hey, maybe no bidding wars, right?

And the closer you get to the holiday season, the slimmer the pickings.

Learn more: When will housing prices drop?

As we mentioned before, in 2023, October was the best month to buy a home. This year could be a completely different story. Fannie Mae economists expect home sales to remain on the weak side through the end of 2024. However, active listings were up over 30% year over year in April 2024.

As the economy transitions, and with the prospect of the Fed lowering the federal funds rate sometime in the near future, the best month to buy a house paradigm is likely to be fluid.

Dig deeper: What the Fed rate decision means for bank accounts, CDs, loans, and credit cards

The likely but unscientific answer to which month is the cheapest to buy a house may be December. Inventory is low, but buyers are scarce, so anyone selling a house may be motivated to offer a discount. Mortgage rates also factor into affordability, of course, especially for first-time home buyers.

Median listing prices are often lowest at the very beginning of the year, according to a historical analysis by Realtor.com. That's particularly true in the first month of the year, according to trends for the five years from 2018 through 2023, excluding the pandemic year of 2020.

The closer you get to the end of the year, the fewer homes are for sale. There are fewer buyers to compete with, yes, but with scant homes on the market, buying can be a slog.

April is the most expensive month to buy a home. In 2024, the week of April 14 to 20 was expected to see homes priced over 10% higher than the beginning of the year, with the median listing price $7,400 above the average week — and $34,000 higher than at the beginning of the year. However, this can vary from year to year. In 2023, median home prices peaked in June.

Over the past nine years, the months with the highest existing home sales were:

  • 2015: July and December

  • 2016: October

  • 2017: January

  • 2018: March

  • 2019: August

  • 2020: October

  • 2021: January

  • 2022: January

  • 2023: February

Local market conditions can impact all the variables you should consider for a home purchase. The best season to buy is when your personal finances are in order, you have an ample down payment, and mortgage interest rates are calculated into your affordable monthly payments.

With a good credit score, a helpful real estate agent, and a list of potential mortgage lenders in your pocket, you’re set.

This article was edited by Laura Grace Tarpley