Further, if you’re fir st-time home buyer looking for a starter home, you can take advantage of lower interest rates through FHA loans and various othe r fir st-time buyer programs. Starter home inventory also gets about a 7% boost between the months of October and December in the U.S., according to Trulia.com. MOVING UP OR DOWNSIZING However, even if you’re not a fir st-time home buyer, but are looking to move to a new neighborhood or purchase a larger home for an expanding family, you can still bene fi t from home shopping during the fall and winter. You might think it’s best to wait for a hotter spring market to sell, or you’d like to move into your new home by the end of summer, so you don’t have to move during the school year. But in the fall or winter, there are fewer homes on the market, meaning less competition for similar homes. And while you might not get the higher sales price you’d get in the spring or summer, the amount you will save on the new, bigger home you purchase in the fall or winter can cover that, and even land you a pro fi t! If you’re downsizing from a larger home to a smaller one (for example, when your older, adult children move out), you might be tempted to avoid the hassle of moving in the colder months, but the same bene fi ts that apply to fir st-time home buyers looking for a starter home can apply to you in this situation. As we discussed, starter home inventory reaches its peak in the fall. “Starter homes” are de fin ed by Trulia as any listing prices below $232,751, based on weighted averages from the 100 largest metro areas in the U.S. If you sincerely object to moving when it’s colder outside, keep in mind there are plenty of reasonably priced local moving 38
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