T
he Housing Market Shift: Sellers' Incentives on the Rise

    As the US housing market continues to evolve, a growing number of sellers are offering concessions to attract buyers. According to Redfin's latest report, 44.4% of home-sale transactions in the first quarter included some form of seller assistance – a significant increase from 39.3% during the same period last year.

    This trend reflects a market where buyers hold more power, driven by high home prices, elevated mortgage rates, and economic uncertainty. With inventory at a five-year high, buyers have more options and greater negotiating leverage. As a result, many properties are lingering on the market, prompting sellers to sweeten the deal with concessions.

    In Seattle, the concession rate soared to 71.3%, nearly double the previous year's figure. "We're seeing concessions for single-family homes too, especially if they've been on the market a while," said Stephanie Kastner, a Redfin Premier agent in Seattle. Concessions are also becoming more common in Portland (63.9%), Los Angeles (56.1%), and San Jose (16.7%).

    However, not all markets are following this trend. New York saw a significant decline in concessions, with only 5.5% of home sales including incentives – a drop of 15.7 points from the previous year. Other notable declines occurred in Miami, San Antonio, Tampa, and Phoenix.

    Some sellers are taking a different approach by adjusting their asking prices to close deals. In the first quarter, 21.5% of homes sold had both a concession and a final sale price below asking – up from 18.5% a year ago. Additionally, 16.2% of sales involved both a price cut while listed and a concession.

    Meanwhile, economic uncertainty is causing more home deals to fall through. Roughly 52,000 US home-purchase agreements were canceled in March, representing 13.4% of all contracts signed that month – the third-highest March cancellation rate since 2017.