Whether it’s the warmer weather, the pending summer break from school, or simply a seasonal mental shift, summer is hot for Nashville real estate. Statistically, spring and summer have always been the busiest seasons to search Nashville homes.
But is summer really the best time to buy a house? While there are certainly some advantages to buying during the coming months, there are also plenty of disadvantages. We highlight a few below!
Pros For Buying in Summer
It really is like clockwork: When April rolls around, property listings multiply like the weeds. One reason is that homes simply show better in the spring, with all the blooming flowers and the lack of snow. Sellers also feel more motivated once the warmer weather rolls around. And then, of course, success begets success. Potential sellers hear about all the bidding wars that result from springtime listings and figure it’s best to wait out the winter chill, then get a piece of the summer action.
Home shopping in winter really is the worst, especially in hard-to-park areas like downtown. Driving through crappy weather, tromping through open houses in your socks because rain boots must remain outside, totally guessing about the lovely landscaping because all the plantings are currently dead … it’s not a fun time to be browsing. But spring is a different story! And there are other perks.
Choosing to move your family is stressful no matter the time of year, but at least in the summer you won’t have to balance packing up your house with school pickup and moving dates with graduation dates. To execute the ideal summer move, you have to start house hunting early. Many families that are purchasing homes would like to be settled in their new residences prior to the start of the school year, and since most standard transaction taking 60 to 90 days to close, they must be in contract by mid-June.
Cons For Buying in Summer
There are many more homes to choose from, yes, but there are also more buyers looking at those homes. Many, many more. Spring produces a rush of potential bidders who, like many sellers, have sat out the previous season in hopes of having more options now. And more buyers, alas, means bidding wars and higher prices. Plus, anticipating this higher demand, sellers may have priced their homes a bit higher than they would in winter.
With all the pressure to buy a home before the school calendar starts anew, it’s a lot easier to start compromising.. and compromising. If you’re looking to change school districts before fall, the desire to purchase anything could start to override common sense. Just remember that it’s possible you’ll be in your new home for a long time, so don’t make a hasty decision.
All that natural sunlight does something to buyers’ urgency levels. In winter, there are almost no competitors, little haggling, and just a chill rhythm to the process. Spring is completely different. The gaggle of buyers often means that time is of the essence. Buyers move in the spring. Which means you have to move too. You won’t always have time go home to hash out the pros and cons of a house; in many cases, you’ll have to be ready to submit an offer quickly.
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