Birmingham Market Update: Nov. 3, 2026 | Birmingham Homebuyers, LLC

Three numbers landed in the past week that every Birmingham homeowner thinking about selling should see: September home sales in the metro were flat, the number of houses for sale is up almost 9 percent from a year ago, and the 30-year mortgage rate is sitting at 7.24 percent after the Federal Reserve left rates alone on October 28. Add a proposed water rate hike that the Central Alabama Water board votes on November 13, and the picture for the next few months is clear. Selling the ordinary way is getting slower, not faster.

Here is what happened, with the sources, and what it means if you own a house in Jefferson or Shelby County that you need to sell this winter.

September sales: flat, with more competition

The Alabama Center for Real Estate’s September figures for the Birmingham metro, reported by The Bama Buzz on October 29, show:

1,174 closed sales, down 0.9 percent from September 2025
4,586 homes on the market, up 8.7 percent year over year
Median sale price $318,000 metro-wide, up just 1.0 percent (inside the city limits the median runs far lower, around $190,000 in our fall update)
43 days on market, up 13.2 percent

Statewide the story is the same: 6,292 sales, a $275,333 median, and active listings up 8.5 percent to 22,525. The Birmingham Association of Realtors‘ own September update, posted October 27, counts 1,306 closed sales and 6,347 homes in inventory across Central Alabama with a $309,900 median. The October report is not out yet.

What this means in plain terms: a year ago a well-priced house in Birmingham had a handful of competitors and sold in about five and a half weeks. Today it has 9 percent more competition, prices have essentially stopped rising, and the average listing takes more than six weeks to go under contract, before the 30 to 45 days a financed buyer needs to close. If your house needs work, it sits at the back of that line.

The Fed held. Mortgage rates did not come down.

The Federal Reserve kept its target range at 3.75 to 4.00 percent on October 28. Freddie Mac’s survey the next day put the 30-year fixed at 7.24 percent, down slightly from 7.32 the week before but more than a full point above the 6.17 percent of a year ago. Fannie Mae’s forecast, summarized by The Mortgage Reports, has the 30-year at 7.4 percent in the fourth quarter and 7.5 percent through the third quarter of 2027. The Mortgage Bankers Association’s chief economist said he does not expect significant relief over the forecast horizon.

For a seller, the rate matters because it sets how much house a buyer can afford. At 7.24 percent, a buyer with a $2,000 monthly budget for principal and interest can borrow about $293,000. At last year’s 6.17 percent, the same buyer could borrow about $327,000. That $34,000 gap is why the pool of financed buyers for a typical Birmingham house is smaller than it was, and why the forecasts above suggest it will stay that way into 2027. We looked at this in September when the Fed first moved: what the rate hike means for Birmingham sellers.

Water bills: the biggest increase in a decade goes to a vote November 13

Central Alabama Water, the utility formerly known as Birmingham Water Works, is recommending a 6.4 percent rate increase for 2027 on top of a new uniform billing structure that starts January 1, according to WBHM. ABC 33/40 ran the numbers for a household using about 3,740 gallons a month, which pays $47.19 today: with no increase the new structure alone takes that to $52.09; at 6.4 percent it becomes $55.42, about $99 more a year and 17.4 percent higher in total. The board votes November 13.

If you are holding a vacant or inherited house, this is one more carrying cost stacking up alongside insurance, the city’s new vacant property registry fee, and property taxes that run at double the owner-occupied rate once nobody lives there.

City Hall: a zoning cleanup hearing set for December 8

The Birmingham City Council’s November 3 agenda, summarized by BirminghamWatch, sets a December 8 public hearing on a zoning case (ZAC2026-08010) that would repeal obsolete provisions in Titles 2 and 3 of the zoning ordinance. It is housekeeping, but owners of older in-city parcels should watch what gets stripped out. The same agenda funds traffic-calming projects in South East Lake, Roebuck and Kilough Springs. The council’s bigger housing moves came earlier in October, when it approved the Southern Area Framework Plan and the Pratt-Ensley rezoning; we covered both: Southern Area plan and Pratt-Ensley rezoning.

What this means if you need to sell this winter

Price for the market you are in, not last year’s. With inventory up and appreciation at 1 percent, an overpriced listing in November sits into February.
Condition matters more when buyers have choices. Houses that need a roof, a kitchen or a cleanout are the ones that accumulate days on market.
Holding costs are rising. Water, insurance, the registry fee and winter utilities on an empty house add up while you wait for a financed buyer who may not get approved.
A cash sale takes rates out of the equation. A local cash buyer does not need a lender, an appraisal or a repair list, which is why the timeline is days instead of months.

Need to sell a Birmingham house before spring?

We buy houses as-is for cash across Jefferson and Shelby County. Offer in 24 hours, close in as little as 7 days, no repairs, no commissions, no waiting on a buyer’s loan.

Get My Cash Offer or call (205) 502-2161. Learn more about our Birmingham cash home buyers.

Birmingham Homebuyers has bought 500+ houses across the Birmingham area since 2016. If you would like a number to compare against a listing, request a no-obligation cash offer, see how our process works, or learn how to sell your house fast in Birmingham. We will update this post when the Birmingham Association of Realtors releases its October numbers and after the November 13 water board vote.

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