House hunters planning to move this summer may not need as much cash for a down payment—a welcome break for buyers finally catching a bit of good luck.
A new report from Realtor.com® economists shows the median down payment fell to $23,400 in the first quarter of 2026—down 19% from a year earlier and marking the lowest level in four years. The shift signals that buyers don’t necessarily need the biggest down payment to make the winning bid.
“I have clients win houses all the time without having a massive down payment,” real estate agent Casey TeVault of Casey Buys Houses in Chino Hills, CA, tells Realtor.com. “Having a big down payment was much more crucial in the past than it is today. When the majority of buyers were putting 20% to 50% down, you lost your competitive edge as a buyer when you came in with 5%. But that’s no longer the case.”…