Price cuts are becoming increasingly common across the U.S. housing market as inventory builds and homes take longer to sell.
About 42% of listings have seen their prices reduced, according to latest HousingWire Data, above the roughly 30% to 35% range considered normal.
Inventory has increased by about 25,000 units since early August, while median days on market have climbed from 63 to 70 days. The median home price has also slipped from $449,000 on Aug. 7 to $439,900 — a decline of about $9,000 in six weeks.
Nimesh Patel, broker-owner of REMAX Fine Properties in Sugar Land, Texas, has brokerages in both Houston and Austin, giving him a view of two of the markets where buyers have gained more choice.
“The amount of inventory is there — a lot of inventory, and buyers are having their choice,” he told HousingWire. “But I think the terminology I’m trying to convey to my agents and clients is that it’s not a buyer’s market per se where you can do whatever you want, however you want.
He said buyers can still overreach when making offers, but the larger selection of homes has changed the negotiating environment.
“We do see people coming in at 20% or 30% below list price and try to put in these offers and then they run away, thinking that they’re going to get a deal. Obviously every situation is different,” said Patel. “Overall, I would say that it’s more of a choice market,” said Patel. “It’s more of a buyer’s choice market in both [Houston and Austin], mainly in Austin.”
REMAX Fine Properties reported $678.2 million in 2025 volume across 1,447 transactions to RealTrends Verified.
Houston, Austin among the coldest markets
Houston currently tops HousingWire Data‘s list of slower markets, with a median price of $370,000 and 4.6 months of inventory. About 40.1% of listings have seen a price cut.
Austin has four months of inventory and a $449,990 median price, with 52.5% of listings experiencing price cuts — the highest share among all large metros.
Patel said Austin has undergone a meaningful adjustment from rapid price growth of the pandemic period, while sellers who bought near the market’s peak face a different set of circumstances.
“The price corrections have definitely helped quite a bit over the past year or even two years, and I think people are getting more realistic,” he said. “The problem is that when you buy your house in the height of the market in 21,22, 23, and now you’re trying to sell, it doesn’t matter how realistic you’re getting. It was just that you were at the height of the market.”
Atlanta has a median price of $444,900 and 3.8 months of inventory, with 42.2% of listings seeing price cuts. Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida, has a $425,000 median price and 3.7 months of inventory, while 41.1% of listings have been reduced.
Los Angeles has a $1.35 million median price and 3.7 months of inventory. About 32% of listings have seen price cuts.
New construction adds to Houston competition
Patel said Houston’s supply picture is complicated by the amount of new construction entering the market.
He said builders planned developments well before current market conditions, leaving them with homes and inventory that need to move.
“So when you start taking into consideration new construction, these builders have slated what they’re going to do 18 months to almost two years out with their developments,” said Patel. “So when that happens, they need to move on, so they’re price cutting so much. If you want a deal as a buyer, you go to a builder.”
Builder incentives currently being offered can extend far beyond the list price, he added.
“You’re able to get more incentives; washer dryer, refrigerator, blinds, etc.,” Patel said. “And then the biggest one is they’re also paying for massive rate buy-downs. So when we’re competing with all of that, my assumption would be that the selling market for a a resale is going to continue to go down because we’re competing with so much new construction right now.”
Sellers face bigger negotiating pressures
The combination of more inventory and buyer choice is also affecting transactions after an offer is accepted. Patel said sellers need to anticipate inspections, repair negotiations and the possibility that buyers have multiple options.
“Once we get a somewhat decent price that you’re agreeing with, you do know that they’re going to do inspections and you know that they’re going to ask for a lot more,” he said. “Because in the end, buyers can back out and go to a different house and see what will happen, because we have so much inventory that they can choose from.”
He said insurance costs have become another source of failed transactions in Texas — particularly when buyers discover that a property will be difficult or expensive to insure.
“Insurance in Texas has skyrocketed,” Patel said. “When I say skyrocketed, it’s almost like you’re making it up that somebody used to be able to insure their house for X amount, and now it’s three times that.”
For sellers whose homes remain on the market without generating enough activity, Patel said response needs to be tied to measurable buyer engagement rather than a series of small reductions.
“If we’re going to list for [$500,000], and we don’t get the activity that we want with marketing, open houses. email blasts and social media, then that $500,000 house needs to be dropped to $475,000 — not $490,000,” he said.
Tighter markets show a different supply picture
While Houston, Austin and other markets have several months of inventory, markets at the other end of the data set have substantially less available supply.
Charleston, West Virginia, leads the current hottest-market spreadsheet with a median price of $229,000 and 0.73 months of inventory. Mansfield, Ohio, has a $225,000 median price and 0.95 months of inventory.
Appleton, Wisconsin, has a median price of $439,900 and 1.13 months of inventory. Terre Haute, Indiana, has a $181,950 median price and 1.12 months of inventory.
Nationally, broader data points in the same direction — more listings are receiving price cuts, inventory has expanded and homes are taking longer to sell than they were earlier in the summer.
