DFW closed June 2026 with roughly 36,000 homes for sale across resale and new construction. That's about six months of resale supply, with mortgage rates hovering just above 6%. By any honest read, that's a buyer's market. Resale homes are averaging 56 days on market across the metro.

Richardson is holding up better than the metro. May MLS data shows a median sold price around $465,000, about 3.3 months of supply, and sellers capturing roughly 98.6% of list price. But the median is down about 3% year over year. Days on market climbed about a week from last year, and Zillow's typical home value estimate for the city has slipped around 4%.

Here's what those averages hide. Richardson isn't one market right now. It's two. Updated houses are selling fast and near list. Original-condition houses from the 1955 to 1980 building boom are sitting, getting inspected, and getting renegotiated. If you own one of those, this post is your math.

Is Richardson a buyer's market right now?

Richardson is tighter than the metro, but buyers still hold the leverage that matters. That's the leverage at the inspection table. Around 3.3 months of supply is technically balanced. The problem is that today's buyer is choosing from six months of supply across DFW, and statewide data from spring 2026 shows sellers who cut price giving up a median of roughly 4% off list. Buyers know they have options. They shop accordingly. A clean, updated house in Richardson still commands a strong number. A house that shows its age competes against every renovated listing within a 20-minute drive.

Why do older Richardson houses sit longest in this market?

Because 2026 buyers walk from deferred maintenance, and most of Richardson's housing stock was built between 1955 and 1980. That means original-owner and second-owner houses with the full DFW-vintage punch list: foundation movement on clay soil, cast-iron sewer lines at end of life, aluminum branch wiring, 50-year-old drainage, and original galvanized plumbing behind the walls.

In a hot market, buyers waived inspections and ate those problems. In this market, the inspection report is a renegotiation weapon. Here's the pattern I see on repeat. House goes under contract at a decent number. Inspector flags foundation and cast iron. Buyer demands a $20,000 to $40,000 credit or walks. Seller either pays it or goes back to market with days-on-market stacking up and the listing looking stale. Then the second buyer's agent sees the busted contract and opens even lower.

What's it actually costing you to hold a house that buyers keep walking from?

What does the math look like on cash offer vs. listing?

Run both paths on a real Richardson scenario: a 1972 three-bedroom in 75081 that needs work. Fixed up, it would appraise around Richardson's median, call it $465K. As-is, your agent says list at $430K and hope.

Retail path (illustrative):

  • List price: $430,000
  • Inspection repair credit after the report comes back: −$20,000
  • Commission at ~6%: −$25,800
  • Seller closing costs: −$4,000
  • 3 to 4 months of carrying costs (mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities): −$10,000
  • Estimated net: ~$370,000, in 90 to 120 days, if the contract holds

Cash path:

  • Renovated value (ARV): ~$465,000
  • Cash offer at ~77 cents on the dollar for this condition: ~$358,000
  • Commission: $0. Repairs: $0. Credits: $0. Carrying: about 10 days, not 4 months.
  • Net: ~$358,000, in about 10 days, guaranteed

The retail path nets more on paper, roughly $12K in this example. The trade is four months of payments, two showings a week, and a contract that can die at inspection. Cash is always the lower number. You're buying speed and certainty with the difference. For some sellers that trade is terrible. For others it's obvious.

When should you still list traditional?

If your house is updated and priced right, list it. You'd be leaving money on the table selling to me. An updated house near UTD or a short hop from CityLine, with the foundation documented and the big systems done, plays to Richardson's strength. Sellers there are still getting close to 99% of list. Richardson's newer stock in 75082 carries median list prices well above the city median. If that's your house, hire a good agent, price to the market instead of to 2022, and take the retail number.

Cash makes sense in a different set of situations:

  • You're behind on payments and the clock is running
  • You inherited a house you don't want to renovate or manage
  • The house needs real work, foundation, cast iron, roof, all of it
  • You're relocating out of state and can't carry two housing payments
  • You've got a tenant in place and don't want to list around them

What are cash buyers paying in Richardson right now?

My buy box runs 70 to 80 cents on the after-repair-value dollar, depending on condition. Original-condition 1960s and 70s stock, the house with the pier-and-beam question mark and the 60-year-old sewer line, lands toward the lower end. Lightly dated houses land toward the top. I buy and hold or renovate myself, so there's no wholesaler fee skimmed off the middle of your offer. The number I write is the number I close at.

What should Richardson sellers do right now?

Get both numbers before you decide anything. Ask an agent what you'd realistically net after commission, credits, and carrying costs. Not the list price, the net. Then get a written cash offer and compare. If you're in Richardson, I'll put a firm number on your house within 24 hours, no obligation. I buy the same way in Garland and Mesquite, where the vintage housing math is nearly identical.

The market already picked a side on original-condition houses. The only question is whether you'd rather fight it for four months or price it once and be done.

Get a written cash offer in 24 hours →

Caleb Callahan is a licensed Texas agent (TREC #837919). Need a written cash offer in 24 hours? Visit callahanhomebuyers.com or call (214) 226-1193.