Homeowners waiting on the sidelines for the best time to sell their homes are now advised to list their properties on the market as the spring season brings with it potentially bigger bids, research data showed.
The week of April 14 to 20 is expected to bring balance to the conditions of the housing market, putting it in favor of home sellers, according to research data from Realtor.com, which analyzed seasonal trends from 2018 to 2019 and 2021 to 2023. The real estate firm predicts this week to have a higher buyer demand and bigger bids, making it the best time for potential sellers to list.
Historically, Realtor noted that April 14 to 20 listings earned 18.4% more views than the typical week. In 2023, listings during that week got 22.8% more views than the average week throughout the year. Additionally, homes listed for sale during this week sold roughly nine days faster than the average week. This number rose to 46 days in 2023.
"At a national level, this week represents a balanced selection of market conditions that favor sellers. While it does not have the highest price or the lowest time on the market of the year, this week offers higher-than-average prices and lower-than-average time on the market while also offering a higher-than-average number of buyers-measured as viewers per listing," Realtor wrote in the report.
Sellers Adjust Their Expectations
Despite a promising outlook, home sellers said they are adjusting their expectations to meet the current market, with only 12% saying they expect a bidding war and 15% saying they expect to get more than their asking price, per survey data from a separate analysis also conducted by Realtor.com.
In comparison, 27% of home sellers said they expect a bidding war to take place, and 31% said they expect to get more than the asking price in 2023.
"Seller expectations are moving away from the [COVID-19] pandemic frenzy toward more normal, pre-pandemic expectations," Hannah Jones, senior economic research analyst at Realtor.com, said. "It's a return to some balance. Although sellers are still in a really good position, this suggests that sellers are open to a little more give and take with buyers."
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