Go get it, Tuesday!

🌤️ Mostly sunny skies with a high near 75, low dipping into the high 50s.

🎂 Happy birthday to our members Deborah Montgomery and Lisa Eizen!

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Today's newsletter is 819 words, a 3-minute read.

Philadelphia-area house hunters, now may be the best week of the year to buy a home, per a new Realtor.com report.

Why it matters: Homebuying is a slog and most shoppers will take any advantage they can get.

By the numbers: Listing prices in the Philly region typically fall around 3% during this week — through Saturday — from their seasonal peak, per the report.

• Plus: New listings are up nearly 6% at this time compared with the average.

The big picture: "Home shoppers heading into fall will find an opportunity that has been hard to come by in recent years: More choices and less urgency," Realtor.com senior economist Hannah Jones said in a press release.

Yes, but: Mortgage rates near 7% and stubbornly high home prices continue to sideline many.

Zoom in: The Philly region is coming off an August where buyer interest had cooled significantly, per a report by Bright MLS.

• Last month, sales dropped 3% as inventory was up 14% compared with the same time last year, per the report.
• Meanwhile, the median home sale price was $425,000 in August, up nearly 5% year over year.

The forecast: "With more supply being added to the market, expect home price growth to slow and for buyers who remain in the market to have more leverage this fall," Bright MLS predicted in its August housing market report.

The fine print: Realtor.com analyzed several years of seasonal housing data, including listing prices and inventory levels, to determine the best week to buy a home nationally and in the 50 largest U.S. metros.

• Mortgage rates weren't included.

The bottom line: Buyers may get a little more breathing room this fall — if they can clear the affordability hurdle.

Spirit Halloween is haunting the shells of former big-box stores again this fall as it opens 1,500 locations nationwide, including more than two dozen in the Philly region.

The big picture: The stores appear and vanish each fall, so finding this year's Spirit often means relaying directions with neighbors in retail shorthand: "Where the old Party City used to be."

Zoom in: Spirit stores in the Philly metro range from: a former Rite Aid on Market Street in Center City; an Acme in Pennsport; LA Fitness in Cherry Hill; and Party City in Springfield, per Spirit's locator.

Zoom out: Of the locations analyzed by Axios across the country, 153 — just over 1 in 10 — were labeled "Former Joann" stores in Spirit's locator.

• Joann closed all of its fabric and craft stores in 2025.
• Former Big Lots stores ranked second with 103 locations, followed by Party City with 100. Both chains shed hundreds of locations after bankruptcy.

Between the lines: Spirit, which bills itself as North America's largest Halloween retailer, relies on temporary leases to transform vacant storefronts into seasonal shops.

• The arrangements bring property owners exposure and a few months of rent while they search for long-term tenants.

The bottom line: A familiar storefront in a new orange costume is a telltale sign spooky season has arrived.

📸 Philly's automatic license plate readers, like those used by Flock, have a big backer: Police commissioner Kevin Bethel, who has defended the AI tech as "a very formidable crime-fighting tool."

• Meanwhile, City Council and community groups are ramping up pressure to ban them, setting up a showdown over the future use of the tech in Philly. (Tribune)

👀 The Department of Homeland Security recently posted on X a video featuring highlights of former Eagles safety Brian Dawkins and his one-of-a-kind pregame walkout in response to a separate posting about an alleged caravan of immigrants approaching the U.S. border.

• The NFL has asked DHS — the latter of which wrote "Our time has come" with its posting — to take down the video. (Athletic)

🗣️ Quote du jour

"I didn't leave my family to lose in the second round."

Waymo's robotaxis have logged more than 150,000 autonomous miles in Philadelphia to date, a company spokesperson tells Axios.

Context: The vehicles have been driving autonomously with a trained specialist on board since late 2025 in Philly proper.

• Besides Waymo's signature Jaguar i-Pace EVs, the company recently began testing its specialized van — Ojai — in the city.

Yes, but: You still can't hail a Waymo.

What we're watching: When the company seeks approval from the state to operate fully autonomous vehicles in Philly.

🏛️ Mike is visiting the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library in Atlanta.

Have a good day!

Today's newsletter was edited by Jen Burkett.