Spring may have higher demand, but it also comes with higher inventory. Your home listing in the fall means less “competition” for you and possibly a better offer. Make sure you have done a great job of addressing curb appeal, staging, and cleaning to help your home really shine.

With more families wanting and needing multi-generational living spaces (think of the sandwich generation with both teens and ageing parents sharing a home), the search for a home could be a longer process, pushing the process beyond spring’s peak.

Often times, sellers will be encouraged to pull their home off the market for the winter holidays. This means inventory will drop and then surge again in the spring. Shopping for a home in the fall will allow you to see houses before the flood of showings after the holidays.

Sellers who keep their listings active in the fall usually have a motivating factor behind their decision, which can benefit you. While it isn’t fully a buyer’s market, because they likely have less showings, they may be more open to accepting your offer.

Buying a home in the fall has several time-sensitive benefits. Your first mortgage payment won’t likely hit until the new year, and you may celebrate the winter holidays in your new space.

In an analysis of over 30 million home sales spanning 15 years, RealtyTrac(r), found that home buyers who purchased in October paid nearly 3% less than in other months. You can also get into your new home right in time for the end-of-year sales on appliances and electronics – bonus!