In November, 59.5% of home offers written by Redfin agents faced competition, the lowest level in 11 months. That’s down from a revised rate of 61.8% in October and a pandemic peak of 74.6% in April, but up slightly from 57.3% in November 2020.
An offer is considered part of a bidding war if a Redfin agent reported that it faced at least one competing bid. This data is subject to revision. Redfin’s bidding-war data dates back to April 2020.
The housing market remains hotter than normal due to record-low mortgage rates and an acute shortage of homes for sale. But homebuyer demand seems to be following a typical seasonal pattern by starting to slow as the year winds down, according to Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather.
“It’s typical for competition to ease in the winter months as more families take time off for the holidays,” said Fairweather. “While competition waned in November, it was still higher than a year earlier, which is a sign that demand will be strong in the new year.”
Richmond, VA had the highest bidding-war rate of the 44 U.S. metropolitan areas in this analysis, with 80% of offers written by Redfin agents facing competition in November. Next came Salt Lake City at 73.8% and San Diego at 72%. Honolulu, HI, and Dallas rounded out the top five, with bidding-war rates of 71.1% and 70.6%, respectively.
“Bidding wars are still happening, but buyers are starting to get more breathing room,” said Jill Thompson, a Redfin agent in Indianapolis, where the bidding-war rate dropped to 36.8% in November from 73.6% in October.
“A few months ago, the typical home was going for $15,000 to $20,000—sometimes even $50,000—over the asking price. Buyers were paying cash, waiving inspection contingencies, and overlooking necessary repairs in order to win,” Thompson continued. “Today, buyers are more cautious about overpaying, aren’t waiving inspections as freely as they were in the spring, and feel less of a rush to commit to a house after the first tour.”
Metros must have had at least 20 offers recorded by Redfin agents in both November 2021 and October 2021 to be included in this analysis.
The table below is sorted by highest to lowest bidding-war rates in November 2021. Blank spaces in the November 2020 column represent metros for which there were fewer than 20 offers submitted by Redfin agents that month.
