2025 has been a bit of a roller coaster for the Dallas/Fort Worth real estate market. Mortgage interest rates have been a bit all over the place, the economy has been a bit moody and we have seen home price decreases all over the metroplex, due to a variety of factors. As we head into the fall and winter season, it appears that home buyers will continue to have more leverage that sellers, and there will be even more opportunities for buyers to find a good deal. I hesitate to be this definitive, but I do think it's currently a "buyer's market".

First off, mortgage interest rates have been steadily declining the past few months, and currently the interest rate for a fixed 30-year mortgage rate is hovering around 6.17%. That is the lowest the rate has been since October 3rd of last year. The Federal Reserve also recently cut rates, which will have an impact on mortgage rates and buying power. When you couple that with the fact that there are still a record number of homes for sale in North Texas and the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, you create an environment where buyer's have a lot of options and leverage to find a good opportunity. On top of that, you also have a ton of new construction homes available from home builders, and because of that inventory, builders are throwing out great incentives for buyers to purchase those homes as well. In some cases, if you use a home builder's preferred lender, you can lock in a 4.99% interest rate, which can lead to lower mortgage payments for buyers. Also, the home builders and lenders are giving out incentives to utilize their services, so if you are interesting in learning more, reach out to me. I am currently helping a buyer purchase a new home through a builder!

According to NTREIS (the North Texas Real Estate Information System, or our "MLS"), the median sales price for all homes currently for sale is approximately $361,000. That sale price is down slightly from a year ago, and is seemingly stable in contrast historically. At the bottom of this report/update, I've listed all of the median sales prices by county. For the first time in awhile, most of the counties are in red, meaning the sales prices are lower than a year ago, and are trending downwards. The only two counties to show growth in October are Parker County and Kaufman County. This "decline" can also be felt in the weekly stats that MLS publishes, that we have access to. According to NTREIS, there have been 645 new listings to hit the market in the last week. During that same time, there have been 967 price decreases! Again, there are opportunities everywhere for home buyers to find a good deal! In addition, from the recent home sale closings, the average percentage of the original list price is 93.3%, which is the lowest it's ever been in MLS! If a home is listed for $500,000, it is typically closing for sales price of approximately $466,500. This scenario will obviously vary from county to county and from neighborhood to neighborhood.

New construction seems to be a route a lot of first time homeowners are taking to seize on lower interest rates and monetary incentives. I work with a lot of home builders, so again, if you or someone you know ever has any questions about builders, neighborhoods to check out and where the best deals are, don't hesitate to reach out! I did a bit of digging, and according to MLS, there are a little over 21,000 homes for sale in the three largest counties in the Metroplex (Dallas, Tarrant & Collin). Out of those homes, 22% of the inventory is considered "new construction". The majority of those new homes are located in Collin County, with new developments expanding everyday in areas like Frisco, Princeton and Lucas. It's definitely worth it to explore these avenues and opportunities. With talk of mortgage rates increasing again, now is the time to capitalize on the "buyer's market"!

Median Sales Prices by County:

Parker – $479,900 (+10.8%)

Collin – $449,990 (-6.1%)

Denton - $435,000 (-6.5%)

Rockwall – $416,250 (-8.4%)

Ellis – $400,000 (-1.7%)

Dallas – $357,000 (-2.2%)

Tarrant – $345,000 (-0.2%)

Johnson – $320,000 (-5.2%)

Kaufman – $317,000 (+2.3%)

Hunt – $265,000 (-4.8%)