Franklin, Tenn. — October 7, 2026

More than one in five U.S. home sellers with active listings cut their asking price in the four weeks ending Sept. 20, the highest share for that time of year since Redfin began tracking the measure in 2022, Fortune reported Tuesday.

The share reached 21.1%, according to Redfin's analysis of multiple listing service data, compared with 19.8% a year earlier. Redfin estimated that U.S. home sellers outnumbered buyers by 58% in August, the widest gap in records dating to 2013, and described current conditions as a strong buyer's market.

Price cuts were most common in Denver, where 30.9% of active listings had a reduction, followed by Indianapolis at 29.9% and three Texas metros: San Antonio at 26.8%, Dallas at 26.6% and Austin at 26.1%. San Francisco had the lowest share among the 50 most populous metros, at 9.6%.

Redfin cautioned that the national figure understates how much the market has shifted. Some would-be sellers are holding off on listing, others are withdrawing homes rather than accept less, and still others are pricing realistically from the start, reducing the need for later markdowns.

Not every economist accepts the buyer's market label. Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS, told Fortune that inventory remains tight and prices remain near record highs in many mid-Atlantic markets, though she acknowledged that more sellers there are cutting asking prices. She said many buyers are already at the limit of what they can afford.

That affordability squeeze is tied to borrowing costs. Freddie Mac's average 30-year fixed rate stood at 7.28% as of Oct. 1, its highest level since November 2023 and up from 6.34% a year earlier, according to the report.

The Fortune article also highlighted research on how sellers weigh offers. Michael Reher, an associate professor of finance at the University of California, San Diego's Rady School of Management, co-authored research finding that all-cash buyers pay about 10% less on average than buyers who rely on a mortgage. The discount, he said, reflects sellers' willingness to give up some money to avoid the risk that a buyer's financing falls through.

The finding points to what sellers are pricing in: not the source of the money, but the risk that a deal fails before closing. For buyers who will finance, that risk is shaped largely before an offer is written, through documented income and assets, a realistic payment ceiling at current rates, and a clear picture of how appraisal and financing contingencies are structured. Reher said buyers should look at conditions in their target market before deciding whether to borrow or pay cash.

The local picture matters as much as the national one. In the Nashville metro, Realtor.com reported earlier this month that 22.5% of listings carried a price reduction in September, above the national share, giving Middle Tennessee buyers room to negotiate even as higher rates limit how far monthly budgets can stretch.

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