 If you’ve been on the fence about purchasing a house in Austin, now is the time to take the plunge and start looking at homes. According to data from the Austin Board of REALTORS, the lowest median sales price for Austin area homes occurs in January. This trend has remained consistent for at least the past 5 years. For a home sale to close in January, that usually means the home is going under contract in December. Thus far in 2017, the highest median monthly home price in the greater Austin area for single family homes occurred in June when the median sales price was $311,000. Compare that to this year’s January median sales price of $277,099, and it’s obvious why closing on a home in January is when you get the best deal.  If January historically yields the lowest median sales price on Austin area homes, you may be wondering why I’m suggesting you should be looking at homes now. Well first of all, finding the right home may take some time. Rarely, do buyers I work with fall in love with the first home I show them. Side note: this has occurred before and if you have a clearly defined sense of what you are looking for in a home and can articulate this thoroughly, it can vastly shorten the shopping time. In general, though, it usually takes time to find the perfect property. The second reason you should be looking now, is that the majority of home purchasers are obtaining a home loan. These take time, and most lenders need 21 days from the date the contract is agreed upon by all parties to the closing date. You may be wondering why January continually yields the lowest median home sales price. Well, this is for a variety of reasons; however, this is primarily a matter of supply and demand. There is far less demand for homes in January as opposed to June. Most people are not thinking of purchasing a home around the holidays; conversely, many families time moves around the school year. Thus, home sales volume, and home sales prices skyrocket in June. There is one disadvantage to looking for a home in December. There is less inventory in December than any other month. Last December, there were 7,714 single family homes active on the MLS in the greater Austin area. In May of 2016, there were 11,267 active homes.  The numbers don’t lie. Now is the time to get the best deal on an Austin area home. If you’re ready to start looking, you can view all Austin area homes for sale here, or contact me today, and I can simplify the process for you. 
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