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The Best Time to Sell Your Home

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. 

 


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