More Home Sellers are Dropping Prices

A large chunk of homes were sold for more than their asking price in September, according to a recent report from Redfin. Redfin found that In the four weeks ending on September 23, 22.9 percent of homes sold for more than their asking price. However, the report notes that this represents a 2.6 percentage point decline year over year, when 25.5 percent of homes sold above their list price.

"With home price growth slowing to 4.7 percent in August, and a record-high share of sellers dropping their prices, the fact that fewer homes are selling above their asking price is another indication that competition is getting less intense than it has been in recent years," said Redfin Senior Economist Taylor Marr. "Inventory pressures are easing in the hottest markets, which is welcome news for homebuyers who are increasingly able to submit an offer without competition and get bids accepted without offering above list price."

Redfin notes that this percentage is the lowest since 2016, and declining since its peak of 29 percent in June. Competitive markets such as Seattle, Denver, Portland and the San Francisco Bay Area have seen the most extreme changes. According to the report, 30.3 percent of homes for sale in Seattle sold above list in the four weeks ending on September 23, down from 50.6 percent during the same period last year, a level not seen in the city since 2014.

On the opposite end of the scale, cities such as Buffalo, New York, Indianapolis and Las Vegas have seen more and more homes selling above the list prices, higher than last year. Redfin notes that this may be due in part to a tightening inventory in these cities pushing prices and competitiveness up.

Meanwhile in Austin, competition has been fairly consistent over the past few years. Homes sold at roughly the same level above the list price in 2017 and 2018 in Austin.

To read the full report, complete with additional charts click here.