The Best Time to Sell Your Home

The data has spoken, and if you're planning to sell, the countdown is on! 
According to Zillow: 
If you want to sell quickly - list mid-March. 
If you want to sell for max profit - shoot for late April. 
(And if you're the over-achiever type, list on a Thursday - the best day of the week for a listing to go live.) 

With that in mind, here's a rundown of what you need to knock out between now and then to prep your home for market (with an estimate of how long each step takes). 

• Schedule a seller consult with a trusted realtor: 1 week
• Make suggested repairs, declutter, and stage: 2-6 weeks.
• Meet with a realtor to set a listing price and schedule listing photos: 1-2 weeks
• List your home on the MLS: 1-2 days
• Wait for an offer: 51 days. (average days on market, October 2022 (Link: https://www.noradarealestate.com/blog/should-i-sell-my-house-now/)
• Negotiate: 3-5 days
• Prepare for inspection and appraisal: 1-2 months
• Close on your home: 1 day

You can sell your home in as little as 8-10 weeks, depending on how quickly you receive an offer. 

What’s the true cost of selling a home? Roughly 10-12% of the sale price.

Here’s a DETAILED breakdown (with 2022 data):

• Agent commissions: 5-6% of the sale price, split between the two agents.
• Attorney fees, transfer taxes, and other administrative costs: 1% of the sale price
• Home repairs and inspection requests: $100-10,000. The most common repair on a home inspection report? Sticky doors that need adjusting. The second? Leaky faucets and shower heads. 

Optional expenses:

• Moving: The average cost of a local move with a two-person team is $1,400. A cross-country move will set you back $2,200-5,700. Save on moving by grabbing a few friends and DIY.
• Interior staging and exterior landscaping: 18% of sellers’ agents said staging increased a home’s value between 6-10%. Staging and landscaping will run 2% of the sale price, making both worthy of your time and money.
• Seller concessions: To sweeten the deal, you may help a buyer with inspection fees, processing fees, or other costs. Usually, no more than 2% of the sale price.
• Home warranty: Some sellers offer buyers a warranty to cover the home leading up to closing, so the buyer knows they’re not facing repair costs as soon as they sign. A home warranty costs $600-900.

One mistake I see from sellers? Pouring money into the wrong improvements before getting an agent involved.