Why Is December the Best Month to Buy?

Still on a Cyber Monday high? Here is one deal that extends all month: new homes. Attom Data Solutions found that December is the best month for potential homebuyers to seal the deal as they can snatch a house for just over a percent of the estimated market value. Of course, the broader story varies by location, but the cold weather tends to bring hot deals for buyers across the nation.

Forget television sets and video games, the best thing to buy during the holiday season may be a home.

A new analysis from Attom Data Solutions, a provider of real-estate data, found that December is the best month of the year to buy a home when it comes to getting a relatively good price. During the last month of the year, homes only sold for 1.2% more than their estimated market value on average. Comparatively, June, when homes sell for roughly a 7% premium, is the most expensive time to buy.

To produce the report, Attom analyzed more than 23 million single-family home and condo-unit sales over the past six years. Attom limited the analysis to days with at least 10,000 sales. Altogether, 362 days met that threshold — exceptions were Jan. 1, July 4, Nov. 11 and Dec. 25.

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