By Otto Acosta, Offerpad Research Team
A single-family home in Houston that sold this past May closed for about 3.3% less than its list price. On a median-priced home, that is roughly $11,600 shaved off the asking price before the seller pays a single other selling cost. Houston homes also took a median of 48 days to sell, so that gap opened up over the better part of two months of carrying the home.
St. Louis sellers had close to the opposite experience. Homes there typically closed a touch above list, around 0.6% over the asking price, and changed hands in a median of 20 days. Same country, same spring, very different math depending on where the home sits.
Using market-wide data from the Redfin Data Center, we looked at single-family home sales across 15 metros where Offerpad operates. Three numbers stand out for anyone thinking about selling: the gap between list price and final sale price, how often sellers cut their asking price before a deal closes, and how long homes sit on the market. All three vary widely from city to city, and in most of these metros they have moved against sellers since 2023.
Two Signals of a Costly Sale
When a home is hard to move, the cost tends to show up in two places you can measure from public data.
The first is the gap between list price and sale price. Redfin reports an average sale-to-list ratio for each market. Turn that around and you get the typical discount off list: how far below the asking price a home actually closes. Across the 15 metros in this analysis, the average home sold about 1.6% under list in May 2026. In the softest markets that gap ran past 3%.
The second is how often sellers cut their price. Redfin tracks the share of active listings with a price drop. When a home lingers, the seller usually lowers the number to draw offers. Across these 15 metros, about 35% of listings had a price cut, and in a few markets more than 4 in 10 did.
Time on market ties the two together. A home that sits longer gives buyers more leverage to negotiate the price down, and every extra week is another week of mortgage, taxes, insurance, and utilities the seller keeps paying. We describe that carrying cost in weeks rather than dollars, because the bill depends on each seller’s loan and location. Redfin’s public data does not break out seller concessions such as closing-cost credits, so this analysis stays with the two things public data captures well: the list-to-sale gap and price cuts.
The Cost of Selling, Ranked by Market
The table below ranks the 15 metros by the typical discount off list price in May 2026, from the largest gap to the smallest. That discount is the clearest market-wide read on what a seller gives up between the sign going in the yard and the closing table. The dollar figures illustrate that percentage on each metro’s median-priced home. They are a simple illustration of the gap, not a prediction of any one seller’s proceeds.
| Rank | Market | Typical Sale vs. List | Illustrative Gap (Median Home) | Homes That Cut Price | Median DOM | Median Sale Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Houston | 3.3% below list | about $11,600 below list | 38.3% | 48 days | $349,900 |
| 2 | San Antonio | 2.5% below list | about $8,000 below list | 39.2% | 72 days | $315,000 |
| 3 | Tampa | 2.3% below list | about $9,300 below list | 41.7% | 43 days | $405,000 |
| 4 | Austin | 2.3% below list | about $10,500 below list | 37.1% | 57 days | $459,000 |
| 5 | Jacksonville | 2.1% below list | about $8,900 below list | 32.3% | 60 days | $419,900 |
| 6 | Dallas | 2.1% below list | about $9,000 below list | 37.0% | 46 days | $430,000 |
| 7 | Orlando | 2.1% below list | about $9,300 below list | 33.6% | 42 days | $445,000 |
| 8 | Phoenix | 1.8% below list | about $8,800 below list | 32.9% | 59 days | $485,000 |
| 9 | Atlanta | 1.5% below list | about $6,100 below list | 34.0% | 40 days | $420,000 |
| 10 | Indianapolis | 1.4% below list | about $4,600 below list | 44.3% | 18 days | $333,820 |
| 11 | Charlotte | 1.4% below list | about $6,100 below list | 31.1% | 50 days | $445,000 |
| 12 | Las Vegas | 1.3% below list | about $6,600 below list | 29.0% | 54 days | $495,990 |
| 13 | Raleigh | 0.9% below list | about $4,400 below list | 35.7% | 31 days | $485,000 |
| 14 | Columbus | 0.1% above list | about $500 above list | 25.4% | 39 days | $385,000 |
| 15 | St. Louis | 0.6% above list | about $2,000 above list | 28.2% | 20 days | $318,750 |
Source: Redfin Data Center, single-family homes, metro level, May 2026. “Typical sale vs. list” is derived from Redfin’s average sale-to-list ratio. The illustrative gap applies that percentage to each metro’s median sale price and is a simple illustration, not a forecast of any individual sale.
Texas markets cluster near the top. Houston, San Antonio, Austin, and Dallas all sit among the widest list-to-sale gaps. These metros drew heavy demand and new construction during the pandemic years, and they are still working through the extra supply. When there are more homes than ready buyers, buyers set the terms, and the gap between asking and selling widens.
San Antonio is worth a closer look. Its list-to-sale gap of 2.5% is steep on its own, but the bigger story is time: a median of 72 days on the market in May, the longest in the group. That is more than two months of carrying the home before the sale closes. For sellers weighing their options in San Antonio, both the price gap and the wait factor into the real cost of a traditional listing.
Where Sellers Cut Their Price Most Often
A price drop is the clearest sign a home is not moving at its first number. The seller lists, waits, and eventually lowers the ask to bring buyers back to the table. In several metros, that is now the norm rather than the exception. The markets below all had more listings with a price cut than the 15-metro average of about 35%.
| Market | Share of Listings With a Price Drop | Median DOM |
|---|---|---|
| Indianapolis | 44.3% | 18 days |
| Tampa | 41.7% | 43 days |
| San Antonio | 39.2% | 72 days |
| Houston | 38.3% | 48 days |
| Austin | 37.1% | 57 days |
| Dallas | 37.0% | 46 days |
| Raleigh | 35.7% | 31 days |
Source: Redfin Data Center, single-family homes, metro level, May 2026. Share of listings with a price drop.
Indianapolis is the surprise at the top. Homes there still sell fast, a median of 18 days, yet 44% of listings had a price cut along the way. That points to a familiar habit: sellers testing an ambitious number first, then trimming it once the market answers back. The lesson holds across markets. A quick sale and a price cut are not opposites. Plenty of homes do both.
Price drops and time on the market do not always line up. Indianapolis and Raleigh cut prices often but sell quickly, while San Antonio and Jacksonville take far longer. The share of price cuts tells you how sellers are pricing. Time on market tells you how long the wait runs. Both matter, and they can move independently.
Where Sellers Have Lost Ground Since 2023
The clearest sign of a cooling market is how often homes sell above their asking price. In a hot market, bidding wars push a large share of sales over list. As demand eases, that share falls. In all 15 metros, a smaller share of homes sold above list in 2025 than in 2023.
| Market | Sold Above List, 2023 | Sold Above List, 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus | 40.8% | 30.5% | -10.3 pts |
| Dallas | 22.4% | 13.5% | -8.9 pts |
| Charlotte | 27.2% | 18.4% | -8.8 pts |
| Atlanta | 27.7% | 19.9% | -7.8 pts |
| Raleigh | 26.0% | 18.8% | -7.2 pts |
| Indianapolis | 24.0% | 18.7% | -5.3 pts |
| St. Louis | 44.6% | 39.3% | -5.3 pts |
| Houston | 17.5% | 12.6% | -4.9 pts |
| Orlando | 17.5% | 12.8% | -4.7 pts |
| San Antonio | 17.2% | 12.7% | -4.5 pts |
| Tampa | 18.3% | 14.1% | -4.2 pts |
| Phoenix | 18.2% | 14.5% | -3.7 pts |
| Las Vegas | 21.4% | 18.0% | -3.4 pts |
| Jacksonville | 14.9% | 12.2% | -2.7 pts |
| Austin | 14.0% | 12.7% | -1.3 pts |
Source: Redfin Data Center, single-family homes, metro level, full-year averages for 2023 and 2025.
Columbus saw the sharpest cooling. In 2023, more than 4 in 10 homes there sold above list. By 2025 that was closer to 3 in 10. It is still one of the more competitive markets in this group, but the edge sellers enjoyed has narrowed. Dallas, Charlotte, and Atlanta each shed roughly 8 to 9 points, a clear shift toward a market where buyers, not sellers, hold the pen.
The list-to-sale gap tells the same story from a different angle. In most of these metros, homes closed further under list in May 2026 than in May 2023. Houston widened the most, going from about 1.7% under list to 3.3% under. Dallas moved from under 1% to about 2.1% under. A handful of markets held roughly steady, but the direction across the group leans toward wider gaps.
The Longer View: Homes Are Taking Longer to Sell
Time on the market is where the shift shows up most plainly. Across nearly every metro, the median number of days to sell has climbed each year since 2023, and the first quarter of 2026 came in higher still.
| Market | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | Q1 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austin | 64 | 69 | 81 | 102 |
| San Antonio | 56 | 68 | 79 | 106 |
| Jacksonville | 53 | 68 | 76 | 82 |
| Phoenix | 51 | 55 | 64 | 67 |
| Charlotte | 46 | 51 | 61 | 80 |
| Dallas | 39 | 48 | 60 | 78 |
| Houston | 38 | 45 | 58 | 78 |
| Las Vegas | 50 | 44 | 56 | 71 |
| Atlanta | 36 | 43 | 55 | 70 |
| Orlando | 32 | 43 | 54 | 63 |
| Tampa | 30 | 41 | 50 | 57 |
| Columbus | 41 | 43 | 48 | 60 |
| Raleigh | 50 | 32 | 44 | 68 |
| St. Louis | 23 | 25 | 27 | 37 |
| Indianapolis | 19 | 23 | 27 | 54 |
Source: Redfin Data Center, single-family homes, metro level. 2023 through 2025 are full-year averages of median days on market; Q1 2026 is the January through March average. Figures rounded to whole days.
Austin and San Antonio now sit near or above 100 days in early 2026. Even fast markets like St. Louis and Indianapolis, which still sell in weeks rather than months, have drifted longer. First-quarter figures run higher than the full-year numbers in every market, partly because winter is always the slowest stretch, a pattern covered later in this article. A rising number of days on market matters for one plain reason: every extra week is another round of mortgage, property taxes, insurance, and upkeep the seller absorbs while waiting. Our earlier look at how long it takes to sell a home found the same lengthening trend across many of these metros.
Does Time on Market Track With the Discount?
Comparing the 15 metros side by side, markets that take longer to sell tend to close further below list. The correlation between median days on market and the list-to-sale gap is 0.61, a moderate positive link. It is real, but it is not the whole story.
The clearest cases sit at the extremes. Houston and San Antonio combine long waits with the widest discounts off list. At the other end, St. Louis and Indianapolis sell quickly and close at or near their asking price. In between, the pattern gets noisier. Phoenix and Las Vegas sit on the market a while yet hold closer to list, and fast-selling Raleigh still shows a small gap. Time on market is one useful gauge of selling pressure, not a precise dial. Local supply, pricing habits, and buyer demand all pull on the final number.
When Selling Costs the Most: Seasonal Patterns
The cost of a slow sale follows the calendar. Averaged across these 15 metros, the widest list-to-sale gaps and the longest waits land in the winter. The narrowest gaps, the fastest sales, and the highest share of homes selling above list all cluster in late spring.
| Month | Typical Sale vs. List | Median DOM | Sold Above List |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 1.6% below list | 48 days | 24% |
| February | 1.1% below list | 48 days | 27% |
| March | 0.5% below list | 39 days | 32% |
| April | 0.1% above list | 32 days | 36% |
| May | 0.3% above list | 30 days | 38% |
| June | 0.1% above list | 30 days | 37% |
| July | 0.3% below list | 32 days | 34% |
| August | 0.9% below list | 36 days | 30% |
| September | 1.2% below list | 40 days | 26% |
| October | 1.4% below list | 42 days | 25% |
| November | 1.6% below list | 45 days | 24% |
| December | 1.8% below list | 50 days | 22% |
Source: Redfin Data Center, single-family homes, monthly averages across the 15 metros in this analysis. “Typical sale vs. list” is derived from the average sale-to-list ratio.
The swing is wide. In December, the average home in these metros sold about 1.8% under list and took 50 days to move. By May, homes were closing a hair above list in a median of 30 days, with nearly 4 in 10 selling above the asking price. That is a roughly 20-day difference in wait time and a 2-point swing in the list-to-sale gap between the worst and best months.
The reason is simple supply and demand. Winter brings fewer buyers, so homes sit longer and sellers cut prices to compete for the ones who are shopping. Spring brings the crowd back, and competition does the opposite. This lines up with our earlier look at the best and worst months to sell a home: the months with the fastest sales and the highest share of above-list deals are the same months when the list-to-sale gap is smallest. Late spring through early summer is the seller’s window.
What the Numbers Show for Sellers in 2026
A few patterns are worth keeping in view.
The market has cooled for sellers almost everywhere. In all 15 metros, a smaller share of homes sold above list in 2025 than in 2023, and in most of them the list-to-sale gap has widened and days on market have climbed. This is a broad shift, not a one-city story.
The gap between the toughest and easiest markets is large. Houston and San Antonio sellers face list-to-sale gaps above 2.5% and, in San Antonio’s case, some of the longest waits in the country. St. Louis and Columbus sellers still close at or above list. Home prices alone do not explain the spread. Supply, buyer demand, and local pricing habits shape how much a slow sale costs.
Time is the through line. Homes are taking longer to sell in nearly every metro, and longer time on market lines up with wider discounts and more weeks of carrying costs. Pricing right the first time, and choosing when to list, both move the number.
For sellers exploring options in Austin, Tampa, Dallas, or Orlando, the data points to a cost structure that reaches beyond agent commissions. In more affordable markets like Charlotte, Jacksonville, Indianapolis, or Atlanta, the numbers are smaller but trending the same way.
Knowing your market’s typical list-to-sale gap and how long homes are sitting helps you set expectations before the sign goes in the yard. If you would rather skip the wait and the back-and-forth of a traditional listing, you can get a free, no-obligation cash offer from Offerpad and compare it against listing on the open market. A cash offer trades a potentially higher open-market sale price for speed and certainty, so it may come in below what your home would sell for if you listed it, and offer amounts vary by home and market. You pick your closing date, with no showings and no open houses. Compare your options and choose what works best for you.
Methodology
This analysis uses market-wide data from the Redfin Data Center for single-family home sales, current as of May 2026, across 15 metros where Offerpad operates: Atlanta, Austin, Charlotte, Columbus, Dallas, Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Orlando, Phoenix, Raleigh, St. Louis, San Antonio, and Tampa. Columbia, South Carolina, where Offerpad also operates, is not covered by Redfin’s metro tracker and is excluded from the rankings.
The “cost” measures here describe the open market, not Offerpad transactions. “Typical sale vs. list” is derived from Redfin’s average sale-to-list ratio: a ratio of 0.967, for example, means homes sold about 3.3% below their list price. “Homes that cut price” is Redfin’s share of active listings with a price drop. “Median days on market” is the median time from list to sale. Where a dollar figure illustrates the list-to-sale gap, it applies the percentage to that metro’s median sale price. It is an illustration of the gap only, not a prediction of any seller’s net proceeds, which depend on the individual home, sale price, and closing costs.
Year-over-year and trend comparisons use consistent periods: full-year averages for 2023, 2024, and 2025, single-month figures for May 2023 and May 2026, and January through March averages for the first quarter of 2026. Seasonal figures are monthly averages across the 15 metros. Redfin’s public data does not report seller concessions, so this analysis does not estimate them.
Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
