When Is the Best Time to List Your Home for Sale?

Published

March 7, 2017

Myles is a former reporter and editor at Credit.com. Before joining Credit.com, he worked as a journalist for the Star-Ledger covering northern New Jersey. He's also covered his home state for Patch.com and the Jersey Journal. He graduated from The College of New Jersey (notice a pattern?). He is adjusting to writing about topics outside of the Garden State.

Selling your home can be a long process, but you can potentially speed it up and make more money if you list at the right time.

Homes listed in late spring typically sell faster and for more money, according to an analysis from real estate marketplace Zillow.

Specifically, homes listed from May 1 to May 15 sell nine days faster and for almost 1% more than the average listing nationwide, Zillow reported. The analysis also looked at the 25 largest metro areas, and in 20 of them, the best months to list were April and May.

The biggest effect was in the competitive Seattle market, where homes listed May 1 through May 15 sold for 2.5% more than average. That amounts to $9,300 extra for the average Seattle seller.

Sellers in other competitive markets, like Denver and Portland, Oregon, also saw premiums of at least 1.5% for listing in early May, according to Zillow.

Local weather can affect the best time to sell a house as well. In places that are warm year-round, like Texas, California and Florida, sellers have more flexibility over when they should list because there’s not as much variance in price based on listing month, Zillow said.

The competitive buying market nationwide contributes to these trends, said Dr. Svenja Gudell, chief economist for Zillow. She said the 2017 market is expected to tighten further, with 3% fewer homes on the market than the prior year.

“Many home buyers who started looking for homes in the early spring will still be searching for their dream home months later,” Gudell said in a release. “By May, some buyers may be anxious to get settled in a new home — and will be more willing to pay a premium to close the deal.”

The day of the week can also affect how many buyers view a listing, Zillow said. Listings that showed up on the Zillow website on Saturdays got an average of 20% more views in their first week on market than listings posted earlier in the week. Friday listings got a 14% bump.

Buying a home is a huge financial commitment. Check out our tips here on finding the right place for you. If you’re financing the purchase, make sure nothing is dragging down your credit scores. You can check two of your scores free, updated every 14 days, on Credit.com.

The following metro areas saw the biggest premiums from listing in late spring.

Seattle
Best Time to List: May 1 to 15
Average Sales Premium: 2.5%

Sacramento, California
Best Time to List: April 1 to 15
Average Sales Premium: 2%

Portland, Oregon
Best Time to List: May 1 to 15
Average Sales Premium: 2%

Denver
Best Time to List: May 1 to 15
Average Sales Premium: 1.7%

San Jose, California
Best Time to List: May 1 to 15
Average Sales Premium: 1.6%

Image: courtneyk