Besides lower temperatures and an abundance of leaves in need of raking, the arrival of fall often means potential homeowners become a little more serious about finding a place to call home.

The lazy days of July and August give way to a sense of urgency to find a home and get settled well before the holidays.

But the red-hot Puget Sound real estate market continues to make life difficult for buyers, as the Seattle area market ranked third nationally for year-over-year price increases, according to the June 2021 S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index. The Seattle area...