The Best Week to Buy A Home In 2026 Is Here and What It Means For Buyers
The Best Week to Buy A Home In 2026 Is Here and What It Means For Buyers
If you've been casually scrolling listings and waiting for "the right time," I've got some news. According to Realtor.com, it's happening right now.
Their 2026 Best Time to Buy Report picked the week of September 27 to October 3 as the best week of the year for home buyers nationally. The Chicago area, which includes us here in Morris and Grundy County, lands on that exact same week.
So what makes this week so good? And does it actually matter for someone buying in Morris, Minooka, or Coal City, Grundy County and the surrounding areas? Let's talk about it.
What Realtor.com looked at:
Realtor.com scored every week of the year on six things buyers care about:
how many homes are for sale
how many new listings hit the market
listing prices
how long homes sit
how much buyer competition there is
how many sellers cut their price
They used data from 2018 through 2025 and skipped 2020 because the pandemic threw everything off. One thing they didn't include is mortgage rates. Rates don't follow a seasonal pattern, so this is all about the market itself, not your loan.
Why this week works for buyers
Here's what this week has looked like historically across the country:
More listings. Up to 13.3% more active listings than the average week, and about 32% more than at the start of the year. More homes means & more options for buyer to choose from.
Less competition. Buyer demand runs 30.1% lower than the peak of the year and 14.4% lower than the average week. Fewer people chasing the same house means fewer bidding wars.
A slower pace. Homes sit about 13 days longer than they do at the busiest point of the year. That gives buyer more time to think and more room & power to negotiate.
More price reductions. This is one of the strongest weeks of the year for price cuts, with about 5.7% of homes seeing a reduction that week.
Price cuts add up. That weekly rate works out to roughly 23% of homes getting a price cut over the month. Realtor.com does note this year could come in a little under that, since sellers have been pricing more realistically up front instead of listing high and cutting later.
Softer prices. Listing prices typically dip about 3.5% from their summer high. On a median-priced home of around $416,000, that's roughly $14,000.
What it looks like closer to home
I love a national headline, but real estate is local, so I looked at our numbers too. Realtor.com breaks out the Chicago-Naperville-Elgin metro, and our area actually looks a little better than the national average during this week:
About 16.8% more active listings than the average week
33.5% fewer views per listing than the peak of the year
Homes spending about 10 more days on the market than at the busiest point
Median listing prices about 5.8% below their seasonal high
One thing I appreciate about this report is that it's honest about the Midwest. Inventory here is still about 34% below pre-pandemic levels, and some popular neighborhoods are still moving fast. So a good week nationally doesn't mean every home in Morris will sit. It means you'll likely have more options and a little more breathing room than you did this summer.
What this doesn't mean
This is the honest part.
A lower median listing price doesn't mean every home in Morris just got 3.5% cheaper. What it does mean is that sellers are usually more open to a conversation now than they were in June.
Every offer still needs to be backed up by that specific house: recent sales nearby, what else is for sale, the condition of the home, and the seller's situation. That's where a local agent earns their keep.
Should you rush to buy this week?
Nope. The weeks right after this one are almost as favorable, and October as a whole ranks well. Buyers should use this window strategically, not treat it like a deadline.
Here's how I'd think about it:
If choice matters most, earlier in the fall usually gives you more fresh listings to pick from.
If price matters most, waiting a bit later into fall can bring more flexibility as demand slows down before the holidays. The trade-off is fewer homes to choose from.
Either way, get pre-approved and know what monthly payment actually feels comfortable for you. A good week in the market doesn't make a stretched budget easier to live with.
And please don't skip the inspection or settle for a house that doesn't fit your life just to hit a date on a calendar. The house has to work long after this week is over.
The bottom line
I always stand behind the fact that the best time to buy a home is when you are ready. But if you've been sitting on the sidelines waiting for your window, this fall in Grundy County might be it.
If you want to talk through what this looks like for you, reach out anytime. That could be getting pre-approved, looking at what's for sale in your price range, or just figuring out where to start. Let's connect or send me a message anytime or or call/text me at 815-693-5757.
– Christy Schmaedeke 🐾
Source: Realtor.com
