Although Summer doesn’t officially end until September 21, Labor Day marks the traditional end of the summer season. As far as the real estate market is concerned, the myth is always that September brings with it a major influx of inventory as well as a new pool of buyers. In 15 years, I have found that September is usually a month of waiting and anticipation of the market "pick up."
Why? The truth is, these next few weeks are still a great time to vacation. Plenty of people will be away these next few weekends and not at open houses. Secondly, many prospective purchasers are families who are beginning the school year. That means an unruly number of meetings and events for parents. Looking for a home is not their top priority. Thirdly, in New York, the Jewish holidays of Rosh Hoshanah and Yom Kippur certainly prevent a certain number of properties from appearing on the market, and a certain number of buyers from shopping. Finally, most sellers who have decided to wait until the "Fall" to put their property on the market are themselves just getting back into the swing of things and usually end up delaying the marketing of their homes.
So as brokers wait for an early Fall "boom," sellers anticipate the arrival of buyers en masse, and buyers eagerly await more inventory to peruse, I have one piece of advice for all: PATIENCE. The Fall market should indeed see more activity, but in my experience in NYC, the "unofficial" start of Fall is October.
Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend and thanks to everyone who reads and comments at True Gotham.
