The Biggest Homebuyer Discounts in Over 12 Years | Feb. 2026 Update

The full on buyer's market is coming for real estate. Right now, home buyers are seeing the biggest discounts in more than twelve years, and this is what we've all been waiting for. There are deals to be found right now if you're an investor. And in this February housing market update, I'll tell you how and where to find it. Hey, everyone. It's Dave, chief investment officer at BiggerPockets, real estate investor for sixteen years, and a professional housing market analyst. And being a housing market analyst is starting to be a little bit fun again these days because there's so much going on, and these are things investors should be paying close attention to because these shifts in market dynamics mean opportunities, specifically opportunities to buy and build out your portfolio. These are the types of changes that we like to see and that we have been waiting for. So today, we're doing our February housing market update. And in it, I'm gonna cover the full on shift to a buyer's market that is making deals easier to find. We'll talk about inventory news that will tell us where the market might be heading next. We'll, of course, do a mortgage rate update and my forecast for rates going forward. Plus, I'll share my February risk report where I'll share data that helps you take advantage of the opportunities that are presenting themselves without exposing yourself to the risks that can come in a buyer's market. So let's get to it. First up, we'll talk about the big picture, which is this. The housing market is increasingly a buyer's market. Now, this doesn't mean that everything is perfect, far from it, but it does mean that deals are going to be easier to find. And this isn't just my opinion or anecdotal evidence. We actually see real evidence of this in the data. First, we're gonna start by talking about pricing. Home prices are up, as of now, about 1% year over year, and this is right within the range we've been predicting for 2026, where I've said things would remain pretty flat, and flat is exactly what we're getting right now. But that 1.2 increase, although it is up in nominal terms, it's actually below the pace of inflation and below wage growth. And that means when you consider all those things together, that affordability in the housing market is finally getting better. This is something we've been waiting for for two, three, four years now. In fact, Zillow just put out their January 2026 market report, and they found that the typical monthly mortgage payment is now 8 and a half percent lower than it was a year ago. That's a lot. I know people are still waiting for rates to come down, but 8.4% lower on a mortgage rate is pretty good. Of course, it is not a solution to affordability. We have a long way to go there. But this is good news. For …