Timing is everything when it comes to selling your home, and finding that perfect window of opportunity can make all the difference in maximizing your profits and minimizing stress. Whether you're a seasoned homeowner looking to upgrade, a growing family in need of more space, or simply exploring new horizons, understanding the real estate market's ebbs and flows is crucial.
In this blog, we'll delve into the intricate dance of factors that influence the best time to sell your home. From seasonal market trends and economic indicators to personal considerations, we'll equip you with the knowledge to navigate the market strategically and make a move that's not only financially rewarding but also tailored to your unique circumstances.
Why seasonality matters when you want to sell your home
A home is a big purchase — one of the biggest many people make throughout their lifetimes. As a result, there are fewer market and buying trend variations than you'd see with smaller purchases like furniture, home goods, and entertainment. Instead, people follow similar trends and model predictable behavior on:
- When buyers start their home search.
- When buyers complete their home search.
- The least favorable times for buying a home.
From these clear trends, sellers can anticipate buyer behaviors and choose the best time to put their home on the market. Working backward, this also allows you to anticipate when you might start making repairs or renovations to your home, when you need to partner with a realtor, and when you can start your next home search for the best results. By timing your home sale to the right season, you can enjoy the benefits of bigger audiences, more offers, and, ultimately, higher-priced offers that meet your listing notes.
Other time factors to keep in mind
Of course, the house-buying behaviors of your market aren't the only factor to consider. While timing your listing can generate more profits, you also need to consider your time considerations and requirements. For example:
- You may need to sell your home suddenly to move to a new job.
- You might not want to wait half a year to reach the prime selling season.
- If you have a custom home, the ideal buying and selling times fall outside typical trends.
- You want the funds ready to purchase your next home without missing the peak season.
- You might want to lock in today's rates instead of risking higher rates in the future.
Your real estate agent and lender can help you weigh all the different seasonality factors that will impact your selling strategy.
The best seasons for selling your home to a big market are late spring and early summer
Nationally and locally in the LA area, conventional wisdom says to sell your home in the late spring and early summer. Recent statistics also support this rule of thumb. Homes typically sell for 12.6% more in May, and this trend has been holding strong for over 10 years of research. Even better, this applies to single-family homes and condos, so you can be confident your home also follows this trend. What's the best day? May 23!
According to the same ATTOM research, the four most advantageous home-selling months are:
- May (with a 12.6% seller premium).
- June (with a 10.7% seller premium).
- July (with a 10% seller premium).
- April (with a 9.2% seller premium).
There are multiple reasons why spring offers these advantages, and the reasons change based on your specific region, type of home, and ideal market. Three of the most universal reasons are:
It aligns with the summer vacation
Most families would prefer not to move in the middle of the school year, especially if they're moving to a new school district. This change can be very disruptive for students, whether they're young children adapting to school life or teenagers in the middle of college testing and advanced courses. Many jobs are also indirectly built on the school year cycle (e.g. teachers, healthcare workers, and service industry workers), so waiting until the summer can offer greater flexibility.
As a result, you might shape your home-selling strategy so your property goes live in late April or early May, and then you accept an offer by late May.
It's historically the peak house-selling season
Some trends simply entrench themselves into place, and this is one of them. With buyers and sellers historically the most active during May, June, and July, current strategies and best practices build on this practice. As a result, selling your home during the warmer months has become an almost de facto process for its own sake, and selling during the colder months is an aberration.
You want to sell your home at its best
Curb appeal is a powerful factor in selling your home in terms of price and speed. During the summer, your home is much more likely to have green grass, blooming plants, and trees with full foliage. Summertime sets a pleasant backdrop for your home, making it more attractive.
The 'worst' times to sell your home are in October and November
These months get less fanfare because it's the middle of the school year, it's colder, and people are more preoccupied with the holiday season. However, when you're selling an attractive home in a strong market, seasonality doesn't have to dictate your schedule. Your home will still find plenty of buyers willing to meet your terms.
Seasonality matters less in El Segundo's pleasantly warm climate
In El Segundo, you don't have to worry about waiting for warmer weather and landscaping curb appeal. The warm climate makes it easy for prospective buyers to explore open houses and consider different properties year round. The summer/winter difference is more pronounced in the Midwest and Northeast. Other aspects, like staging your home, can have more impact.
Convoy Home Loans is here to help our clients all year long
While seasonality will impact the total number of buyers you may see — and which specific buyers you see — it may have far less impact than conventional wisdom will lead you to believe. If you're ready to sell your house now and move to a new home as soon as possible or you're just starting to explore your options, reach out to Convoy Home Loans. We're a nationally licensed mortgage brokerage that can help you buy properties anywhere in the country. Our team of local experts can help you evaluate your financial options along every step of your selling and buying journey.
