Seasonal slump:

Every year around the holidays, there are fewer new listings added to the market. This decrease in new listings can be reported in alarming headlines and get a lot of negative attention. Please be in good cheer and know that while November’s new listing totals were down, it’s in line with the normal seasonal slump we see. Does that mean buyers don’t buy between Thanksgiving and Christmas? Not at all!

Buyer bump:

Comparing this November to last November, pending sales are up by more than 11%. Last November ended with 1,169 pending contracts and this November ended with 1,300. Buyers are most likely reacting to predictions of a busier spring market and the promise of lower interest rates as the current Federal Reserve Chairman’s term ends May 2026. 

Exact match from last year:

Months supply in November 2024 was 5 months and is an exact match for November 2025. We monitor this statistic because months supply is the calculation of total properties for sale (supply) divided by how many properties sold last month (demand). This number demonstrates supply and demand which makes it an important statistic to follow to understand the real estate market. 

Surprising reversal:

After a historic low of only 1.1 months of supply in 2022, months supply steadily increased over 3 years to a high of 5.8 months in May 2025. Having 6 consecutive months of dropping months supply in 2025 is the first time that’s happened since 2021. What does that mean? It means after a 3 year trend of marching away from the strongest sellers market in history towards a balanced market, we came really close to tipping over 6 months which would have meant the market officially favored buyers. For the last 6 months, the trend has reversed and gone back towards favoring sellers. We’re still seeing buyers having mostly equal footing during negotiations but if this trend continues, their bargaining power could be eroded by lower supply and higher demand. 

Are the holidays a good time to make a move? That depends on a variety of factors and if you’re thinking about buying or selling, please set up a no hassle consultation with us. We’d love to learn more and your goals and your situation to see how we can best help.