Main Content

When‌ ‌is‌ ‌the‌ ‌Best‌ ‌Time‌ ‌to‌ ‌Sell‌ ‌Your‌ ‌House?‌

for sale signage

This is one of the most frequently asked questions in real estate and with good reason. Sale prices can vary depending on what season you put your house up for sale, so you’ll want to make sure that you put your house on the market at the most opportune time.

Spring is in

If you can choose the season to sell your home, you should put your Connecticut home up for sale in the spring because March to May is historically the most active season for people looking to buy a house.

Strong spring sales in Connecticut mirror the rest of the country. According to the National Associations of Realtors, the months of May and June were responsible for 40% of annual sales volume in 2019, with June taking the crown as the busiest month. The months where the fewest sales were made were from November to February. It took 53 days to sell the average U.S. home in May 2019, compared to 87 days in January of the same year.

Many homes stay on the market for one to two months before a contract is signed, and the closing process can also take one to two months. This means that the typical successful sales cycle for a home is two to three months.

Spring is also an excellent time to sell a house because beginning in April, the weather is warmer and a lot of plants are already blooming in yards. Buyers also have more time to look at houses, since the days are beginning to lengthen and a new school year hasn’t started yet. If you’re looking to list your home in April, make sure to get the inside of your house in shape during the winter, then prep your house’s exterior in March.

Sell on a Saturday

According to Zillow, many home buyers peruse home listings on a Saturday, so make sure to list your home on this day. Friday is also another good option. Avoid listing your home on a Tuesday, which attracts the least number of views.

Do local market research

You’ll also want to consult with a reputable local real estate agent who is knowledgeable about local market trends. Is it a buyer’s market or a seller’s market? Are there a lot of houses similarly to yours that are being sold right now? A savvy local real estate agent will know the answers to all of these questions. They’ll also be able to give you a comprehensive description of the current state of home values in your area.

The state of your house

Ultimately, whether or not you’re ready to sell your home will depend on the state of your house. Before you put your house on the market, you’ll want to make sure that there aren’t any major repairs that need to be made. If there are, you’ll need to fix those creaking floorboards or that leaky faucet before you sell your house.

With most buyers viewing homes online, you should also make sure that your house is staged properly. Don’t forget to pay attention to the exterior as well. Make sure your front door looks inviting, the yard is neatly landscaped, and so on.

Remember that it will take a considerable amount of time to clean your house, make repairs, stage it, and photograph it. Make sure to keep this in mind when you’re planning to sell your house.

Can you afford to sell your home and buy a new one?

Before you sell your home, make sure that you have enough equity to buy a new one. Selling costs like home improvement, agent fees, and even unforeseen concessions can take up a significant chunk of the sales prices.

You can use an online home sale calculator to see how much you’ll need to spend for selling costs and what your net profit will be, so that you can have a clear idea of how much money you’ll make from selling your home.

Once you have this figure, you can then start to determine your budget for buying your new home. You’ll need to add expenses such as moving costs and buying new furniture to your calculation.

Connect with an expert

Selling a home is a complicated business, but you shouldn’t fear the process. With over 15 years of experience, you can count on us to make the home selling process as pain-free as possible.

For more tips for selling your Connecticut home, contact us, Kathy Danais at 860.214.1295 and kathydanais(at)gmail(dotted)com, and Lisa Gordon at 860.805.7722 and lgordonrealtor(at)gmail(dotted)com.