Benefits of Starting Your Home Search Early in the Year

Unlock the Early Advantage

If buying a home is on your agenda for 2025, consider this strategic move: begin your search in January or February. At Cindy Coggins Realty Group, we believe starting early isn’t just about timing—it’s about gaining leverage, reducing stress, and maximizing your home-buying power in the Collin County area and beyond.

Less Competition — The Quiet Window of Opportunity

The traditional “home-buying season” kicks off in spring and extends into summer. According to a national analysis, late spring and early summer are the busiest and most competitive phases of the year. Bankrate+2Old Republic Title+2
By beginning your search before that surge, you’ll:

• Encounter fewer competing buyers at open houses and viewings.
• Have more time for thoughtful decision-making instead of racing to submit offers.
• Gain stronger negotiating power when fewer buyers are chasing listings.

Ask yourself: If many other buyers wait for “spring,” could you gain an advantage simply by acting sooner?

Motivated Sellers — A Source of Strategic Leverage

Homes listed early in the year often point to sellers who have compelling reasons to move—job changes, year-end tax planning, relocation deadlines, or desired timing aligned with a new school year. This kind of motivation can translate into negotiation flexibility: price reductions, closing-cost assistance, or favorable contingency terms.

Ask yourself: How can you position yourself as the buyer who meets the seller’s timeline or solves a deadline—and turn that into better terms for you?

Seasonal Pricing Benefits & Cost Efficiencies

Historical data shows that spring and early summer often bring seller premiums—the extra buyers pay because of competition and timing. For example, an analysis by ATTOM Data Solutions found that homes sold in May achieved an average seller premium of 13.1 % above market value. ATTOM+1 Meanwhile, winter months tend to offer fewer buyers vying for the same homes, allowing more negotiating room.

Starting early can also help you tap into cost advantages for services: movers, inspectors and contractors tend to be less booked and may offer more availability—and in many cases, favorable rates—when the major move season hasn’t yet crowded the calendar.

Ask yourself: What decision-fatigue or premium cost might you avoid by acting before the spring jump? How much could you potentially save (or gain in leverage) by being ahead?

A Smoother Moving Process & Better Timing Alignment

By searching early, you gain timeline control. Fewer concurrent home closings means fewer scheduling bottlenecks for inspections, appraisals, and moving-services. You can also better align the move with life events—school semesters, job transfers, family planning or downsizing. In a growing area like Collin County—serving cities such as Allen, Frisco, Plano and McKinney—timing is a quality-of-life factor, not just a transaction-detail.

Ask yourself: Beyond finding the right house, how important is the when of your move? Could earlier timing reduce stress, overlap, or disruption for your family?

Local Application for Collin County Logic

Here in Collin County and the broader North Texas region, the seasonality patterns are present: inventory tends to pick up in spring, buyer competition intensifies, and pricing dynamics shift. By starting now, you position yourself to act before the market heat arrives—not scrambling when everyone else hits the listings.

Key steps:

• Get mortgage pre-approved now so that when you find the right property, you’re ready to act.
• Define your must-haves vs. deal-breakers ahead of time—so you don’t lose clarity when inventory expands.
• Monitor how early-year listings price themselves—sellers listing now may already anticipate the spring wave and are primed for negotiations.

Ask yourself: Are you ready—not just with your finances, but with your criteria and timing—to move before the market changes?

Questions Most Agents Don’t Ask (But We Do)

• If you act before the crowd, what trade-offs are you willing to accept—and what do you refuse?
• If you find the right property now, is your timing and readiness aligned to move efficiently (inspectors, closing, transition)?
• How do your life goals (kids graduating, career shift, downsizing for empty-nester status) align with an early-year start?
• If you wait for spring, what extra cost (in price, competition, stress) might you incur?

Ready to gain the edge?

At Cindy Coggins Realty Group, we guide you not just to “buy a home”—but to strategically enter the market early, with momentum on your side. Starting now means you’re not just participating — you’re leading.

Contact us today to schedule a consultation and begin building your winning strategy for 2025.

📞 CALL OR TEXT: (469) 499-7452
📧 EMAIL:  cindycoggins@kw.com

Sources:

• “Best time to buy a house: Why spring is ‘home-buying season’.” Bankrate, Jan 27 2025. https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/best-time-of-year-to-buy/ Bankrate
• “Why January Is the Best Time to Buy a Home.” HAR.com, (September 2016). https://www.har.com/blog_133046_why-january-is-the-best-time-to-buy-a-home HAR.com
• “The Best Time to Sell a Home Is in the First Half of the Year.” ATTOM Data Solutions study (May 1 2024). https://www.attomdata.com/news/most-recent/attom-best-days-to-sell-a-home-analysis-2024/ ATTOM
• “The Best and Worst Time To Sell A House.” Bankrate, Feb 10 2025. https://www.bankrate.com/real-estate/best-time-to-sell-house/ Bankrate
• “Real Estate Experts: These Are the 3 Best Times of Year To …” Yahoo! (Feb 4 2025). yahoo.com