Key facts
- Homebuilders are increasingly using price discounts and incentives to sell homes.
- Slower markets and areas with more large, public builders tend to have deeper discounts.
- Celina, Texas, had the highest rate of homes selling below asking price (92%).
- Most recent homebuyers (over 90%) already own a home and possess significant equity.
- Buyers often move locally, with most coming from within the same state or metro area.
- Nearly half of recent sellers were giving up mortgage rates below 4% to move.
Homebuilders are facing a challenging housing market, leading them to increase price discounts and incentives to attract buyers. Data from Audience Town, a marketing platform partnering with homebuilders, reveals significant variations in discounting across different markets and provides insights into the profile of current homebuyers.
The report analyzed over 201,000 closed sales across 25 markets in the 12 months ending August 2026. It found that builders sold homes below asking price in every market, with the degree of discounting varying widely. Celina, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas, experienced the deepest discounting, with 92% of homes selling below asking price and a median sale time of 105 days. This slowdown was partly attributed to H-1B visa restrictions impacting a key buyer demographic. In contrast, Kansas City showed the lowest discounting, with 47% of homes selling below asking price.
Markets with a higher concentration of large, publicly traded homebuilders also tended to exhibit higher discounting, as these companies often have greater financial capacity for incentives. Texas markets, in particular, showed a strong tendency for homes to sell below asking price, with 80% discounted by at least 5%, compared to 41% elsewhere. Overall, only 18% of new homes in Texas metros sold at or above asking price.
Audience Town's buyer data, based on over 47,000 sales and thousands of community tours, indicates that most recent homebuyers are not first-time buyers. More than 90% already owned a home, with 45% having lived in their current residence for at least a decade, suggesting significant built-up equity. Despite income levels, a substantial portion of buyers had high net worths, enabling them to afford homes above $1 million due to equity and savings. Touring households demonstrated higher wealth and income compared to general website visitors.
The analysis also found that buyers are predominantly local. In a four-market relocation study, most buyers originated from within the same state, often from nearby communities. Even in growth markets like Port St. Lucie, Florida, a majority of buyers came from within the state.
Despite the mortgage rate lock-in effect, with typical 30-year rates around 7.0%, a significant number of sellers are willing to give up historically low rates to move. Nearly half of recent sellers had mortgage rates below 4.0%. The data suggests that the home tour is a critical conversion point for builders, with buyers spending considerable time researching before a tour, after which a sale typically follows within weeks.