With the Fed raising rates and demand softening across Central Florida, buyers have more choices, and sellers need the right price to sell.

It's been a while since we talked about the market, so with cooler temps finally showing up in Central Florida, let's run through where things actually stand.

Inventory looks like last year. Inventory fluctuates, up a little and down a little, but we have about the same number of homes on the market as we did a year ago. I just got off a call with Keller Williams Realty International, and home sales are tracking about the same year over year through 2023, 2024, 2025, and into 2026.

The Fed raised rates again. The Fed did raise rates, and the real question is what that does to mortgage rates. Those are tied to Treasury yields rather than to the Fed directly, so the two don't move in lockstep. Some of the predictions I'm hearing are that rates might go up from here.

Buyers have more to choose from. Whether rates move or not, this is a great time to be a buyer. You have more homes to look at, and the builders are still offering really good incentives, because demand is soft across the board. There's real room to get a good deal on price.

“The biggest opportunity right now belongs to the buyer, simply because they have more choices.”

Appraisals are coming in high. Pretty much all of our buyers right now are seeing appraisals come in higher than the contract price, because sellers are having to come down. There are also options on the rate itself, from interest rate buydowns to having the seller cover your closing costs, and builders are still offering buydowns too.

Sellers still sell when priced right. If you need to sell, we're still getting homes sold. You do have to price it correctly and follow the market, given where demand is. Getting a stager in there before you list is still part of how we get it done.

If you've been waiting to get into the market, you have more options than you've had in a while.

If you have specific questions about what any of this means for your home or your search, give me a call at 407-499-8993, email me at chris@mypinnaclehomes.com, or visit mypinnaclehomes.com. I'm happy to walk through the numbers with you.