Should I buy or sell now, or wait until later in 2026 (Collin County edition)?

by Christina Money

This question comes up in my inbox weekly, and I get it, because Collin County is a “high-stakes” market. Decisions here are not small.

Let’s anchor in what the market has been doing locally:

Collin County’s median sale price was about $435K in Nov 2025 and down 8.4% year over year. Redfin
Homes were taking around 73 days to sell on average, which is slower than last year. Redfin
Zillow’s data also showed many homes selling under list, with a sale-to-list ratio around 0.978. Zillow

That is not a “wait or you’ll be priced out tomorrow” vibe. That’s a market where strategy matters.

If you’re a buyer in Collin County in 2026

The biggest benefit of buying earlier in 2026 is leverage. When homes sit longer and sellers have competition, buyers can negotiate:

closing costs
repairs or credits
rate buydowns
flexible closing timelines

The risk of waiting is that if rates dip even a little, more buyers jump back in. Demand rises faster than inventory, and the market gets tighter again.

So my “buy now vs later” filter is simple:

Buy now if you plan to stay 3 to 5+ years, your payment is comfortable, and you find a home you would be sad to lose.
Wait if your job situation is uncertain, you are not financially ready, or you are buying because you feel pressured.

If you’re a seller in Collin County in 2026

The biggest mistake sellers make in a softer market is thinking, “I’ll list when it heats up.”

Sometimes it does heat up. But the competition also increases. You get more buyers, yes, but you also get more listings. Collin County inventory was already trending healthier by late 2025, with thousands of homes available in Zillow’s snapshot. Zillow

So my “sell now vs later” filter looks like this:

Sell now if you are also buying (because you can often negotiate on both sides), or if your home is going to show beautifully.
Wait if your home needs major work and you are not ready to price accordingly, or if your timeline is flexible and you want to prep for a stronger first impression.