Sellers are lowering prices to attract buyers, 1 in 5 homes will see a price reduction in nine major metros by February 2026, according to a new analysis from the Realtor.com® economic research team.
These metros all had a share of price reductions of 20% or more—led by Phoenix–Mesa–Chandler, AZ, where 28.2% of listings were marked down in February.
Other markets with similar high rates of cuts include Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL, at 24.8%, San Antonio–New Braunfels, TX, at 22.6%, and Tucson and Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR-WA, both at 21.8%.
Price reductions were common in Jacksonville, FL (21.1%), Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington, TX (21%), Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford, FL (20.7%), and Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos, TX (20%).
“What stands out is how geographically concentrated these markets are: three in Florida, three in Texas, and two in Arizona,” it said.Jake Krimmelchief economist at Realtor.com. “Sellers there may be quick to cut because they know more listings are likely to come in in the spring, so competition among sellers is going to be intense. They may be trying to get out before then and undercut others to sell their home, maybe so the sellers themselves will turn around and buy their next home.”
Texas and Florida lead the pack
In February, Texas and Florida each had three metros rate among those with the largest share of rate cuts.
Florida markets included the Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Jacksonville, and Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford.
“I see more price reductions in Florida markets like Tampa, Jacksonville, and Orlando,” said a Florida real estate agent and investor.Ron Myersand Ron Buys Florida Homes, he tells Realtor.com.
“Many retailers are still stuck [COVID-19] epidemic prices, but consumers are no longer willing or able to pay those numbers. Higher interest rates, rising insurance costs, taxes, and HOA fees have made buyers more cautious. “
Myers says price reductions can work, but only if the seller is honest.
“Small cuts usually won’t move the needle,” he explains. “Florida is seeing a lot of price reductions because prices are rising so fast, and now the market is adjusting to what consumers can afford.”
“The number of immigrants we’ve had in Orlando has dropped 80 percent in the last two years,” said an Orlando real estate agent. Brendan Rendostrategic real estate consultant at Real Estate Bees, tells Realtor.com. “The influx of people buying inventory has stalled, which is one reason why we’re seeing so many price drops in Orlando. In the last week alone, we’ve seen 750 price drops in Orange County, FL.”
Meanwhile, the Texas markets that saw the highest share of price reductions in February were San Antonio–New Braunfels, Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington, and Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos.
“Price reductions tend to occur in large waves at this time as we enter what is typically a strong spring market,” Michael Reisorfounder of Reisor Team at Compass in Texas, tells Realtor.com.
“Many of these listings are likely to be launched in the winter, and depending on the level of traffic and buyer response they’ve received, listing agents may advise sellers to make price adjustments now to stay competitive as new listings come online at peak spring rates in Texas,” explained Reisor.
Texas real estate agent Danny JohnsonwithDanny Buys Housestells Realtor.com that he still sees sellers in the Lone Star State setting their home prices too high.
“If others have their houses for sale at a high price, it is difficult for sellers not to see that as a sign that they can still get a high price,” he said. “Here in San Antonio, our county tax rates are still much higher than what homes are selling for. This also gives sellers the false idea that they will sell their home for a higher price.”
This epidemic is also related to the reduction of prices in Austin.
“In Austin, we’ve been in the headlines as the No. 1 metropolitan area with rates going down, but that’s because we had a big spike during the violence,” Samantha Midler of Austin Portfolio Real Estate tells Realtor.com. “Texas had free frontiers and open spaces, so everybody and their mother moved here. It was an artificial need that was crazy and incalculable.”
The price reductions hit Arizona’s two metros hardest
In February, two Arizona metros ranked among those with the largest price reductions: Phoenix–Mesa–Chandler, which leads the nation, and Tucson.
“I’m seeing a dramatic drop in prices in Arizona,” said an Arizona real estate agent James Sansonreal estate consultant at Real Estate Bees, tells Realtor.com. “The market is very quiet, and things are not selling, so sellers are trying to get into the lower bracket to sell their houses and increase the number of available buyers who can buy them.”
Sanson says many of these discount retailers are winter visitors who are visiting Phoenix one last time and want to close this chapter of their lives.
“They believe they’re playing with mortgages from the COVID spike, and the upside needs to come back into alignment,” he said. “They want to get in front of the quarter that is rolling down the hill and catch it, rather than chase it down to the valley.”
The reduction in prices is still lower every year
Even though these specific metros experienced sharp price reductions, the reductions across the country remain below 2025 levels.
“Price reductions have decreased slightly compared to this time last year, even if they are still high,” said Krimmel. “That’s possible because the market is still soft and it’s starting to lean towards buyers.”
According to Krimmel, this year’s marketers are writing about realistic expectations.
“We’re seeing prices going down in our monthly and weekly data,” he said. “In fact, median list prices in our weekly data have declined 2% or more year-over-year for eight straight weeks now.”
The price per square foot is low, too.
“We saw the price per square foot drop 2.6% year-over-year last week—the biggest drop since Realtor.com began tracking that data series in 2017,” Krimmel noted.
That change could help retailers avoid visible cuts in 2025.
“If people initially list low, maybe they don’t have to drop the prices like they did last year,” Krimmel said. “Sellers may have learned from last year’s slow market.”
