Want to Sell Your Home? You Might Want to Wait Until Spring.
If you’re getting ready to sell your home, it may be in your best interest to wait until the Spring months to put it on the market– specifically, mid-March to mid-May. What is it about the Springtime that makes buyers more willing to put down a competitive offer on a home? There are a few factors that contribute to why this sunny time of year is the perfect time to sell your home.
Hello, sunshine.
Weather plays a huge role in the success of a home sale. Obviously, weather varies from state to state– a winter in Ohio is going to be more extreme than a winter in Arizona. Generally speaking, Springtime cheers people up after living in the the dark, cold winter months. The warm weather induces an overall happiness in most people, and the desire for new beginnings. Perhaps that’s why homes generally sell 15 % faster in mid-March to mid-May and for 2% more than the average listing, according to Zillow.com. It doesn’t hurt that the sunny weather makes homes look great in listing pictures.
Spring is also a great time for buyers to start looking for a new house because by the time the deal is likely to close, their kids will be just out of school, making the moving process a little easier. As families get out of the dreary winter mindset and the holidays are far behind them, they tend to to clean out the house and get rid of things they don’t need. When people list their homes during the Spring months, they adopt the “spring cleaning” frame of mind and are able to productively clear out their home for future showings.
What’s your house worth?
When an appraiser calculates the value of your house, they look at data from other homes that sold in your neighborhood at that time. If you sell your home in the winter, other homes that are valued lower around you due to the off season will throw off the value of your home. However, if your home is appraised in the spring, the value will go up based on the high market values of other homes listed in the same neighborhood. The more data that is collected, the better; which is why you should wait to put your house up sale until the springtime when more homes are on the market. This way your home is more likely to have a higher market value, and will sell faster.
It’s all about timing.
Now that a significant amount of time has passed since the recession, sellers are starting to realize they can finally sell their home for the same price they bought it for– and probably even more. In 2016, home sellers are becoming more confident that their homes will sell for a great price. 2016 also proved to be the year of first-time millennial buyers. According to the National Association of Realtors, many millennials have been able to save up over the past few years, and are finally ready to purchase their first home. And the fact that they’re so technologically savvy and can educate themselves on the subject very easily, gives them confidence to buy for the first time.
Do you think Spring is the best time to list your home? Tell us what you think!