When Is The Best Time To Sell A House?

By PropertyClub Team
Sep 13th 2020
Obviously, the best time to sell a house is when the real estate market is peaking, but that can be hard to time. What about something you can control. Is there a best day or month to be selling a home? Here's what you need to know.

Knowing when to sell a house can be tricky. While you can’t always time your sale to coincide with a hot real estate market, you can put your house on the market during the best time of year. 

When it comes to real estate, timing is everything. If you choose to sell your house when the country is in the middle of a financial calamity, you might end up having an underwater mortgage. If you choose to sell when prices are high, you will end up reaping a healthy profit. 

Of course, that’s looking at things at a very high level. Real estate agents will tell you that there are predictable trends when it comes to peak buying and selling seasons year after year. As it turns out, some things rarely ever change. If you’re about to sell your home, you’re probably wondering if choosing the right timing to sell your house can get you a better offer and more money. 

hash-markDoes Timing Impact Your Home Sale Price?

Believe it or not, the time you sell your home can greatly impact your home’s selling price. This is primarily true when it comes to the months that you’re trying to sell it, but it can even extend to the weekday (or weekend) that you decide to host the closing. 

Studies show that selling at the best possible time can give you as much as 5.6 percent more on your home price. That’s not a small sum of money! To make things even sweeter, houses that are put on the market at the right time also get sold 18 days earlier than those at low times.

hash-markWhen Is The Best Time Of Year To Sell A House?

The best time of year to sell your home is in May. Houses listed in May tend to sell 18 days faster than average and are sold at a higher price. However, that’s just the overall trend across the nation. 

In certain parts of the country, June and July are considered better home sales months than May. The best way to find out your optimal sales time is to talk to a real estate agent who’s had several years of experience under their belt. 

hash-markWhy Is May Such A Popular Sales Month?

There are several reasons why May tends to be the peak season for home sales. Most commonly, it’s a mix of the following things:

  • Easy Weather- People like to move in weather that’s nice and warm...but not too warm. May makes for a very good moving day, simply because the weather tends to be mild rather than wild. 
  • Schools End- When grads are done studying at their university, they tend to want to move home. Or, they move to their first new job. This alone leads to demand in homes and rentals. 
  • Summer Freedom- Many families choose to move during the summer as a way to take advantage of the free time they get on vacation. Those extra days make it easy for people to settle in and get their kids enrolled in school. 
  • Tax Refunds- Those tax refunds often make for better down payments. People are also more prone to using their tax refunds for moving costs or closing costs, too.

hash-markWhen Do Most Home Sales Close?

Though May tends to be the best time to put a home on the market, June tends to see the most closings. If you live in a hot market, you can expect the home you listed in May to receive multiple offers within days of being put on the market and then close in June. 

hash-markDoes The Time Of The Week Improve Your Home’s Closing?

We now know that the month you choose to put your home for sale can make a difference at closing, but what about the time of the week? This can vary from sale to sale, but there have been a couple of studies on this topic that have revealed trends. 

If you’re a seller, then you want to close on weekends. Closing on the weekend or close to the ends of the week tends to give a higher price. However, this isn’t as important as choosing the right month.

hash-markConclusion

If you are looking to get the most money for your home, then the numbers are pretty clear. Your best bet is to start selling your house at the end of spring or the beginning of summer. Doing so will give you a better shot at scoring an excellent sales outcome. 

Of course, timing isn’t everything. If you need to move sooner rather than later, don’t let the statistics scare you. You need to take everything on a holistic level, and that includes figuring out your best move. 

Choosing to move isn’t something you have to do on your own. If you aren’t sure whether you should sell, the best thing you can do for yourself is to reach out to a real estate agent.