In a hot housing market, where there are more buyers than there are homes for sale, competition rises. A good house will attract multiple buyers and give the home’s seller the benefit of choosing whose offer is best. This, of course, can be stressful for home buyers, as it most often means paying more than expected or losing the house to another buyer. This year, with for-sale inventory down and buyer interest surging, the market has seen plenty of competition. Home shoppers have had to act quickly and decisively in order to beat other buyers and successfully purchase a home. In fact, according to one analysis, nearly 60 percent of home buyers who bought a home in August faced competition. That’s significant. But fortunately for fall house hunters, there’s some potential good news on the horizon. That’s because, in September the number of home buyers reporting that they faced competition fell for the first time in five months. The nearly 3 percent decline could be a sign that the market may finally start to cool off after a hot summer. (source)
