When to Buy a New Home for the Best Deal

In many ways, buying a new home is a lot like buying a new car. There are many different manufacturers and features to choose from and price is always a big factor in your decision. What many people don’t stop to realize is just like a car there are certain times of the year when it’s better to sign a contract.

The general rule is to sign a contract towards the end of the month where a builder may throw in extra incentives to earn your business. This helps them meet their monthly sales goals. However, it is very important for builders to make their annual numbers, especially if the builder is a publicly traded company on the stock exchange. Companies like Toll Brothers and Pulte Homes are publicly traded and have fiscal years that define the beginning and end of a 12-month period where they will measure their performance and report the results to their shareholders. Every company has a fiscal year but they don’t necessarily line up to the calendar year where January is month one and December is month twelve.

So knowing when a company’s fiscal year ends could also help you negotiate a better deal in those months. Below is a small sample of popular builders in Dallas-Fort Worth and their fiscal year end months.

Fiscal Year Ends in December (matches Calendar Year)

• Cal Atlantic
• Chesmar Homes
• David Weekley Homes
• First Texas Homes
• Highland Homes
• History Maker Homes
• M/I Homes
• Pulte Homes

Fiscal Year Does Not Correspond with Calendar Year

• Ashton Woods (ends in May)
• Beazer Homes (ends in Sep)
• D.R. Horton (ends in Sep)
• Dress Custom Homes (ends in Mar)
• KB Homes (ends in Nov)
• Lennar Homes (ends in Nov)
• Toll Brothers (ends in Oct)