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Here's what Monthly Homeowner Intelligence actually looks like.

Buyers have more options.
What can they do with them?

If your last experience buying a home involved rushing through a showing and wondering what you had to give up to get an offer accepted, it's worth taking a fresh look. More choices can give buyers room to negotiate. The next question is whether the seller across the table is willing to work with you.

Three numbers worth knowing.

Oakland County · September 2026 data
Latest available monthly figures checked October 12.

Figures are not seasonally adjusted and may be revised. Active inventory includes single-family homes and condos/townhomes, excluding pending listings. Time on market runs from listing to pending, closing, or removal, depending on available data.

There are more listings to consider than there were in August. What these numbers can't tell us is how many owners need to move and how many would simply consider it at the right price.

That matters when you're trying to figure out whether there's a deal to be made. A long time on the market is a reason to ask questions. It isn't proof that the seller is ready to take less.

Some sellers have a deadline.
Others have a number.

An owner relocating for work may care a lot about a reliable closing date. Someone who would happily stay another year may be willing to wait for a particular price. Those are examples, not assumptions we should make about a listing.

Before advising a buyer on an offer, I want to ask what's important to the seller, what timing works, and whether the terms offer any flexibility. We may not get every answer, but it's better than guessing from the days-on-market counter.

Their preferred number still has to work for you.
A seller's willingness to wait doesn't make the house worth more. Comparable sales, condition, and your budget still need to support the offer. Sometimes the right decision is to keep looking.

You may have more say than you think.

More available homes can give you something useful at the negotiating table: another option. If one seller won't work with you, there may be another house that fits. That can change how much pressure you feel to accept the first set of terms.

When a seller wants to get a move done and competing offers aren't there, we can look beyond whether they'll take a few thousand dollars off the price.

The opening is there on some homes. The job is to recognize it. More countywide inventory doesn't guarantee leverage on a particular listing. A well-priced home with competing offers is a different conversation from one with little activity and a seller ready to move.

"We don't have to sell" is useful to know.

If that's your situation, tell me. There's nothing wrong with being comfortable staying where you are. It changes the conversation we should have before putting the house on the market.

What would you realistically keep after the sale? What would your next home cost? Is the number that makes moving worthwhile supported by comparable sales?

If those numbers don't line up, staying put may be the sensible answer. Listing high just to see what happens still means preparation, showings, and time spent keeping the house ready, even if no move follows.

I'd rather figure that out at the kitchen table than after you've spent weeks living around showings.

And if the plan is "wait until spring"?

That's worth talking through, too. Waiting may give you time to prepare and make the move easier on your schedule. It also means more months of upkeep and a different set of competing homes when you do list.

Compare the cost of staying with the cost of your next arrangement. Count taxes, insurance, interest, maintenance, and moving expenses where they apply. The principal portion of a mortgage payment reduces your loan balance, so it shouldn't all be treated as money lost by waiting.

I wrote about this earlier this year. The question still fits this fall: does spring make sense for your situation, or has it just become the default answer?

Read: Should you wait until spring? →

Buying again, too? Check what a rate change could do to your next payment. ↗

Give the house a fall walkthrough.

Before the yard disappears under leaves, take a look at the things you won't feel like dealing with when it's cold.

Watch where the water goes. From the ground, look for overflowing gutters, disconnected downspouts, or water collecting near the foundation after rain. Arrange help where needed.

Check the everyday annoyances. A drafty door, loose handrail, or dark entryway is easier to address before winter weather adds to the problem.

Make one short list. Separate what needs attention now from what can wait. You don't have to turn every weekend into a renovation project.

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Want to put your own numbers to it?

If you're weighing a move, wondering what your house could sell for, or deciding whether to stay put, let's walk through it. You don't need to have the plan figured out first.

Let's talk through your options →

Or just reach out. No pressure.

—Mike

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