If you’ve spent any time at all with us, you likely know two things:
We love Pittsburgh real estate.
We’re obsessed with board games. (Tip: Check out our family game night recommendations!)
As it turns out, the local real estate market currently feels a bit like a board game—albeit a weird, turn-based, strategy board game.
The industry has always been wrapped in rules and regulations, and now there’s more strategy than ever involved, regardless of whether you’re buying or selling.
Every turn now requires careful consideration—even more than we recommended back in 2025.
Table of Contents
Current State of Real Estate In Pittsburgh
Tips for Sellers In 2026
Tips for Buyers In 2026
Understanding Off-Market Strategies
Beware Zillow
Find Additional Real Estate Support
Current State of Real Estate In Pittsburgh
Look, I hate to say it, but the one word that even comes close to describing our market right now is unpredictable.
Ever since the COVID lockdown, each year has brought a new element of unpredictable flux to the market.
Last year, the country was preoccupied with a new administration, concerns about job security, and a fluctuating stock market.
This year, the country is preoccupied with international conflict, administrative decisions, and the cost of living.
Everything impacts the real estate market. And although we’re seeing the momentum we normally see in March and April, we’re still experiencing difficult fights for both buyers and sellers—even though it’s supposed to be a seller’s market.
Interestingly, housing prices haven’t increased as much as in recent years, which you would think would spur more activity.
But that’s not the case.
There’s a lot we don’t know—and it’s hard to predict a year or two out.
That said, here’s what we do know:
The Pittsburgh market has good momentum going into May.
The Pittsburgh market is performing better than other major regions and cities.
No two houses have the same story when it’s time to buy or sell.
This is a strange time to be in real estate. So, our best advice is to take it one day at a time and one house at a time.
Tips For Sellers In 2026
While we’re technically in a seller’s market, this is still a challenging time to sell a home. Some houses are sitting on the market for months at a time without any sign of closing, while others disappear the weekend after they’re listed.
With our sellers, we set expectations early on:
On timeline: We recommend expecting the sale to take 4–6 weeks. If it takes less, wonderful!
On price: We recommend expecting negotiations to pull the final sales price below asking. If you can get full price, wonderful!
Of course, we do everything we can to sell as quickly as possible at the highest price possible, but this market has been, again, unpredictable. It’s better to maintain realistic expectations.
Tips for Buyers In 2026
Our advice for homebuyers is similarly cautious: Expect to move quickly on deals, but don’t go crazy.
In other words: Proceed with caution. That means:
Don’t waive inspections. If anything, agree to complete the inspection in a few days to keep the transaction moving forward.
Don’t waive all contingencies. This is not the time to completely eliminate financial protections in your interest—like sale-of-home contingencies.
Don’t immediately accept the asking price. There’s likely still room for you to negotiate, especially if there are certain repairs or concessions you’d like to fight for.
We’ll say it again: We’re technically in a seller’s market, but it’s an atypical one. You don’t have to come through with an ultra-competitive offer if it means putting you, your family, or your financial well-being at risk.
Understanding Off-Market Strategies
One thing we can tell you with certainty in 2026: It’s getting harder and harder for real estate agents who are part of small brokerages. Organizations like Compass are actively acquiring other brokerages, and that’s expanding their reach, portfolio, and technology—which benefits both buyers and sellers.
This is especially important with off-market strategies.
In Pittsburgh, we’re seeing more and more homes receive a sneak preview among the professional real estate community before they hit the market.
And there are good reasons for this to happen. For us, we occasionally opt to start with off-market private listings because:
We can get immediate feedback on pricing.
We can get immediate feedback on potential improvements before going onto the market.
We can get an idea of how competitive a house will be if it hits the market.
We can potentially sell the house faster and sell through a member of our professional community, which can make the entire transaction run more smoothly.
All of this is great for sellers.
But it creates a more challenging environment for buyers. The only option: Work with an agent who already has a robust network of fellow agents and can tap into the off-market options.
Beware Zillow
Ask any real estate agent in the U.S., and they’ll tell you their relationship with Zillow is complicated. Although buyers and sellers love Zillow as a research tool, the platform is often:
Inaccurate
Incomplete
Misleading
For agents, Zillow is a necessary evil because it’s a powerful ad platform for leads. But its days could be numbered.
As brokerages (like Compass) continue to grow, their own internal technology becomes even more robust. A perfect example: Now that Compass has acquired both Coldwell Banker and Sotheby’s, you’ll soon see homes from all three brokerages in the Compass app. That’s huge!
What’s more, Zillow’s competitors are making smart deals to get ahead. Redfin, for example, has partnered with Compass to share data—making it even more accurate than Zillow.
There’s a lot of movement and discussion about Private and Coming Soon listings, and it will be interesting to see where this lands. We’re carefully watching, learning, and collaborating around the ever-changing marketing tactics to make sure our listings reach the right buyers, quickly!
Find Additional Real Estate Support
This might be a confusing market, but you don’t have to face it alone.
But if you are ready, contact us. We’ll work with you every step of the way—from crawling through attics during inspection to staging and showing your home.
We can’t wait to get started!
Cheers,
J&T