Every autumn, home sales typically plummet as families focus on the upcoming winter holidays.

But this year the seasonal decline is greatly diminished due to COVID-19 and the widespread quest for larger living space to accommodate home-based work and schooling. Indeed, pending home sales registered only a minor decline of 2.2% in September, after four consecutive months of robust growth.

“The demand for homebuying remains super strong, even with a slight monthly pullback in September,” says Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors (www.nar.realtor).

Buyers are thrilled by the availability of low mortgage rates -- as low as 3% or less for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage. Yet many are extraordinarily frustrated by two interlocking factors: a severe shortage of inventory and galloping price increases.

Real estate specialists don’t necessarily advise that buyers postpone their purchase plans until 2021, given the likelihood that demand will remain strong next year. Rather, they suggest that this year’s holiday season could be as good a time as any for buyers to move forward in a high-demand market.

“There’s zero point in delaying. People selling houses in November and December are highly motivated to move, and hence will usually negotiate in good faith,” says Michael Crowley, a real estate broker in the field since 1992.

Crowley tells the true story of one client who just now acted decisively in a competitive market to beat out rival bidders.

The client -- a 36-year-old physician determined to buy a house near her own place for her elderly parents --used an “escalation clause” in her offer to ensure she’d have the winning bid for the small blue split-entry house her folks picked out.

“This doctor won against four other competitors by offering to top any other offer up to a finite amount. Ultimately, this escalation clause cost her just $2,000 over her original bid. Because her parents put her through medical school, she was extremely pleased to thank them with the house they wanted,” says Crowley, a past president of the National Association of Exclusive Buyer Agents (naeba.org).

Still, he only recommends that clients attempt the escalation-clause strategy if they’re found a place they truly covet.

“It’s a funny thing, but people will sometimes fight to outdo other bidders for a property they don’t really like. You never want to fight for a lemon just for the sake of winning,” he says.

Here are a few other tips for buyers:

-- Inform yourself on local property values before you bid.

Though there are many neighborhoods where would-be buyers outnumber willing sellers, real estate specialists caution buyers against generalizations.

“It goes without saying that all real estate is local. That means the national picture is irrelevant, and your local market could be dragging when others are soaring,” says Eve Alexander, a veteran real estate broker who specializes in luxury properties.

She urges buyers to educate themselves on local property trends in the area of their choice before venturing a bid, particularly if their bid has an escalator clause attached.

“For comparisons, try to identify five to 10 comparable properties that have sold recently in the area where you’re looking,” Alexander says.

If you’re seeking to buy in a neighborhood with widely varied properties, it’s helpful to compare the homes on your list on a price-per-square-foot basis. Then adjust for differences in size and home features, such as garage size.

After estimating the current market value of the home you wish to buy, it’s time to decide how aggressive an offer you want to make. Alexander says that will depend on how enamored you are with the home.

“You won’t want to push the limits if you’ve fallen in love with the property and feel it’s a ‘do or die’ situation,” she says.

On the other hand, you might choose to make a lower offer if there are other available homes in the area that would meet your needs equally well.

“It’s always easier to negotiate without emotion if you can find second- and third-choice houses you also like,” Alexander says.

Once you’ve made a firm decision on your bid, she recommends you attach a brief but friendly letter that explains your position and draws on comparable sales data to support it.

-- Reject comparables from “market testers.”

Eric Tyson, co-author of “Home Buying for Dummies,” says in every market there are a few sellers who won’t budge from an unrealistically high price.

“It’s a given that some supposed sellers aren’t really motivated to make a fair deal,” he says.

How can you tell which sellers are merely testing the market and will never negotiate seriously with anyone who bids less than their lofty list price?

Tyson recommends you ask your agent to find out if previous offers have come in on the property you want. If the owners have already rebuffed one or more decent offers without so much as a counterbid, this indicates they’ll probably resist reason with you, too.

The good news for buyers is that information on past offers is often readily available through the listing agent.

“Agents are inherently outgoing people. Some have very loose lips and will talk candidly about their clients’ negotiating position and whether it’s worth your while to do a low bid,” he says.

-- Try to discover the sellers’ equity position.

Are you seriously interested in a home but have yet to submit an offer on it? If so, Alexander says it’s wise to inform yourself on the sellers’ ownership stake before you bid. As she says, those with more equity have more potential room for compromise.

“What you’re looking for are insights into the mindset of the sellers,” Alexander says.

One source of clues on the owners’ equity position can be found by searching local government land records. At the minimum, these records (usually available online) should tell you when the current owners purchased the property and the original price they paid.

“If the sellers brought the house a couple of decades ago and haven’t refinanced, they should have a lot more equity,” Alexander says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

In the midst of the pandemic, those with strong and sustainable incomes are smashing records for home-buying in appealing areas outside metro cores.

“Professionals able to work from anywhere basically view this entire economic disruption as an opportunity to live wherever they want,” says Glenn Kelman, the CEO of Redfin, the national real estate brokerage.

To get a bigger house for the money, these buyers, many of them the parents of young children, are willing to uproot and even change states to obtain a plush domain with loads of square footage. In some cases, they’re even considering resort communities.

“People are buying vacation homes and then taking a permanent vacation, where they’re working from those houses,” Kelman says.

Obviously, those working in fields suffering layoffs -- such as hospitality, travel and retail sales -- are in no position to buy a home these days. But some in sustainable white-collar industries are highly motivated to purchase a larger place.

“This level of demand is just insane,” Kelman says.

Adding to the sense of urgency for many buyers is the ascent of home prices, coupled with beguilingly low mortgage rates. They’re undaunted by the fact that desirable properties are in extremely short supply.

“Affordability is at the heart of this year’s noticeable migration from high-cost downtowns toward suburbs, small and midsized towns, and even vacation destinations,” says George Ratiu, a senior economist for Realtor.com, the national home listing service.

It’s true your money will typically buy more house if you choose a place many miles from a city. Yet real estate specialists urge home shoppers to thoroughly investigate any outlying area far from where they currently live before they commit.

“No house is an island. You could buy a splendid house in an area that looks appealing on the surface. But if you land in a community where neighbors rarely socialize, that could be an unhappy outcome,” says Mark Nash, a real estate analyst and author of “1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home.”

He says some buyers mistakenly assume that picking a community with expensive houses will yield them a warm, welcoming neighborhood. But that’s not always the case. “You could move to a tiny condo and find wonderfully interactive neighbors. Or you could buy your way into a super-fancy neighborhood and encounter snobby people who refuse to interact,” Nash says.

Here are few pointers for buyers:

-- Don’t rule out a brand-new subdivision or condo complex.

Are you weighing a move to a new development, but fear it would be unfriendly? If so, Nash suggests you learn more about the community before automatically rejecting it.

Granted, many condo buildings are populated by young professionals or two-income families who have extremely demanding daily schedules, even during a pandemic, that keep them busy for long hours. Still, many who move to new developments are motivated to build lasting friendships with neighbors.

“They’re open to making new friends because they have few established relationships,” Nash says.

-- Look into the social dynamics of any neighborhood you’re considering.

Buyers who want a friendly, interactive community are advised to spend time there in search of clues about how people relate.

“Even coveted neighborhoods can have real issues. It only takes a couple of unpleasant, busybody residents to spoil the mood in the whole neighborhood. That’s particularly likely if they’re always on social media undercutting other people,” Nash says.

During the pandemic, you might be reluctant to go door-to-door. But even adhering to social distancing guidelines, you could still walk through a community on a weekend to chat with neighbors who are out in their yards.

-- Go visit a community you’re considering more than once.

Nash recommends that those with a strong interest in a target community visit at varied hours to look for patterns of human behavior.

“Drive through the neighborhood four times in a day -- during the morning, at midafternoon, at dinnertime and again at 11 p.m. Notice whether people are relating to each other or staying inside their homes nearly all of the time,” he says.

In some neighborhoods, residents are superficially friendly yet don’t build in-depth relationships with each other.

“Perhaps you’ll see people out walking their dogs who smile and wave to each other. But they seem too busy to stop and communicate,” Nash says.

-- Always remember that friendships are reciprocal.

Those with a support structure within the immediate radius of their home have many advantages. Not only can they borrow the cup of sugar they need to finish a batch of cookies, but they can also count on help in an emergency.

Still, as Nash says, moving to a friendly neighborhood won’t guarantee you develop a strong support structure -- unless you invest time and energy in creating positive relationships that are genuinely give-and-take. You need to interact during times of celebration as well as need.

“All good relationships, and that includes relationships with fellow residents, must be reciprocal if they are to be strong and enduring,” he says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

The United States could be heading toward one of the biggest generational transfers of housing in decades, say those who track the country’s real estate markets.

Many more aging baby boomers -- the eldest of whom are now in their 70s -- are expected to soon begin letting go of their big suburban houses.

Meanwhile, young families with growing offspring are eager to take over large and well-located suburban houses, which are currently in very short supply.

“Until now, lots of older folks have been clinging to their family homes. Who wants to move during a pandemic? But all that will likely change profoundly in the near future,” says Mark Nash, a longtime real estate broker and analyst.

Nash predicts that as early as 2021, many more boomers will be compelled to sell their spacious properties, due in large measure to health worries, but also financial concerns.

“Right now, because of forbearance programs, the mortgage payments of many seniors (like adults of all ages) have been temporarily suspended under federal rules. But after COVID-19, that will change, and all these deferred payments will come due. Owners who can’t pay up may have to sell to avoid foreclosure,” Nash says.

He says seniors who must liquidate their equity to fund their retirement years will eventually release many of the sort of properties that families so desperately wish to acquire.

In many neighborhoods, the present zeal for home-buying among young families is unusually strong.

“The buying season we’re seeing this fall more closely resembles peak market activity we’d see in the spring of a typical year,” says Chris Glynn, a senior economist for Zillow, the national real estate company.

Until now, one factor slowing the generational transfer of housing has been that many older people have deferred spending on the sorts of improvements that would make their properties more show-worthy.

“A lot of people falsely believe it costs a fortune to get a house ready for sale. That’s only the case if the place has severe problems, such as foundation issues, a leaky roof or major plumbing problems,” says Nash, the author of “1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home.”

In reality, most properties don’t require extensive expenditures to prep them for a positive sale.

“A ho-hum house can become a whole lot more appealing with a small investment in paint and cleaning supplies,” according to Nash.

Here are a few pointers for sellers:

-- Undertake a “power cleaning” for major impact.

Doing an in-depth cleaning can be one of the most cost-effective steps sellers can take to distinguish their property from rival homes for sale in the same neighborhood.

“The simple fact is that clean sells. Like it or not, people do judge a book by its cover. And any house that looks the least bit dirty will nearly always be passed over,” Nash says.

However, remember that the kind of cleaning your place needs is not the sort of superficial work you’ve typically done in the past before guests came over for dinner.

“You need to do a power cleaning -- the deepest cleaning you’ve ever done. For example, you need to clean every window, inside and out, no matter how high,” Nash says.

Are you unwilling to tackle such an in-depth chore? Then Nash recommends you spend the few hundred dollars it costs to hire a well-recommended cleaning crew.

“For sellers, an investment in cleaning services gives a tremendous bang for the buck,” he says.

-- Find a listing agent skilled in staging.

These days, many sellers see the wisdom of engaging a professional home stager. This is a design-minded person who removes excess furnishings from a property and then rearranges the remaining items to make the place seem larger and more attractive.

Hiring a professional stager can cost $500 to $1,500 or more, depending on the size of the space. But you can obtain high-quality staging services for no extra charge by selecting a listing agent trained in the art, says Kendall Bergstrom, a veteran agent who specializes in luxury home sales.

“Many real estate people have added staging to their skill sets,” she says.

-- Arrange for a pre-listing home inspection.

In the current seller's market, it’s not uncommon for buyers to waive the right to a home inspection to make their offer more competitive. But even after a contract is signed, deals can still fall through if the buyers discover a significant problem with a place.

As Nash says, many savvy sellers won’t risk a failed deal -- one that could delay their moving or retirement plans. To avoid this outcome, he urges sellers to hire their own inspector before their place goes on the market.

Granted, it can cost $200 to $600 or more to hire an inspector. And there will be more bills if the inspector locates problems that require repair. But that could be money well spent if it preserves your chance to sell on your timetable.

“The reality is buyers are now much more willing to walk away from a deal if scary-sounding problems are identified at any point in the process. The best way to avoid this crisis is to identify and resolve all the issues before any buyers arrive to tour your place,” Nash says. (To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)