Buyers, battered for years by soaring prices and bidding wars, may finally be catching a break.
New data from Redfin shows 34.2% of home sellers dropped their list price in February 2026, the highest February figure in records stretching back to 2012, up from 31.5% the same month a year ago.
Among those who did cut, the average reduction hit a cool $40,915, or 7.3% off the original ask.
“Based on Redfin data, yes — this is one of the highest levels of price cuts we’ve seen in at least the past decade,” Daryl Fairweather, Redfin’s chief economist, told The Post.
“February 2026 had the highest share of sellers cutting prices of any February on record (back to 2012), putting it near the top of the historical range overall. That said, price cuts are seasonal: they tend to peak in the fall and winter and dip in the spring and early summer. While this is a record for February, some late-year months in prior years have seen similarly high or higher shares.”
The culprits are familiar. Mortgage rates remain stubbornly elevated. The broader economy is unsettled. And with a robust rental market offering a credible alternative, would-be purchasers are in no rush to sign anything.
“The increase in price cuts is because of high mortgage rates and an uncertain economy, combined with a favorable rental market,” Fairweather said. “Potential homebuyers are reluctant to make a purchase when they are unsure of whether they will be able to find a job if they lost employment and renting provides more flexibility. So sellers have to cut prices to make their homes more affordable and attractive.”
Nowhere is the correction more brutal than across the Sun Belt. In San Antonio, nearly six in 10 sellers, 57.9%, lowered their asking prices in February, the worst showing among the nation’s 50 largest metros. Austin came in at 55.2%, Dallas at 47.3%, Tampa at 45.9% and Fort Lauderdale at 44.9%.
Both states have been building aggressively, flooding the market with inventory and handing buyers real leverage. Florida faces additional headwinds. Escalating natural disaster risk, insurance premiums that have gone through the roof and rising condo HOA costs have pushed some homeowners to the exit.
San Francisco is a different universe. Just 7.4% of sellers there cut their prices in February, the lowest rate in the country. San Jose came in at 11.1%. Bay Area sellers are known for intentionally underpricing to spark bidding wars, a dynamic that makes conventional price-cut data largely irrelevant in that market.
The timing matters. Sellers who close in spring historically face the fewest price cuts. That knowledge has lit a fire under homeowners who pulled their listings last fall rather than capitulate on price. They are racing back to market now.
Redfin reported last month that relistings surged in January 2026, with nearly 45,000 previously delisted homes returning for sale, the highest January figure on record going back to 2016.
“Spring is typically the best time to list your home because that’s when we see the highest number of buyers looking to make a move as the school year ends,” Jo Chavez, a Redfin Premier agent in Kansas City, told The Post.
“Moving during the school year can be disruptive to children, and family schedules are packed between sports and activities. For others, they may be shifting into the next phase of life becoming empty nesters as the school year ends are no longer bound by school boundaries,” Chavez added. “Plus, the weather is usually consistently better so buyers are more likely to be out home shopping on a sunny spring day versus a dreary fall or winter day. Typically, we see traffic slow down mid-summer as people try to squeeze in a family vacation as school begins again.”
Fairweather backed that up. “Spring is the time of year when most people decide to move. That way they can plan their move-in date to coincide with when the weather is good and kids are out of school. That being said, home sellers do about as well finding buyers in the summer and early fall because even though there are fewer buyers there are also fewer homes for sale to compete against. Winter can be tricky because of all the holidays and inclement weather.”
Agents on the ground see this as an inevitable reset after years of pandemic-fueled excess.
“The price cuts are largely a market correction. Prices were so inflated in recent years as those lower interest rates brought a flood of buyers and multiple offers,” Chavez said.
Redfin’s numbers likely undercount the full scale of price cutting. The analysis only captures reductions made after a current listing goes live. Sellers who chopped prices before delisting last fall and then re-listed fresh this spring effectively reset the clock. Their earlier concessions don’t show up in the 34.2% figure at all. The real number may be higher.
