Even though 30-year fixed mortgage rates haven’t changed much — hovering in the high 6% range since late January— a Thursday report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shows that home buyers enticed by more options and inventory are beginning to enter the market. Sales of previously owned homes increased 4.2% from January to February to reach 4.26 million units.
Given the possibility of interested buyers, is there an ideal time for home sellers to list their properties? Yes. And it’s coming up fast.
A new report from Realtor.com found that sellers could fetch up to $27,000 more for their homes than usual during the week of April 13 through 19.
Realtor.com examined seasonal trends from 2018 through 2024, excluding 2020 when pandemic shutdowns essentially froze the housing market. The site considered factors like listing prices and homebuyer demand (views per property on Realtor.com). Realtor researchers determined that April 13 to 19 “represents a balanced selection of market conditions that favor sellers.”
“This is the right time of year to list and to get ahead,” Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com, told CNBC.
Related: More Homes Are Selling Below Asking Price as Inventory in the U.S. Climbs to a 5-Year High
During that week, home prices are 1.1% higher than the average week during the year and 6.7% higher than prices at the beginning of the year. If 2025 follows the pattern established in previous years, the national median price of a home listing that week could reach $27,000 more than its price if it had been listed in January and $4,800 above the average week.
The week of April 13 to 19 also sees more buyers browsing listings, indicating higher demand, and witnesses homes selling more quickly. This week historically had 17.7% more views per listing than an average week throughout the year; homes actively for sale sold nine days faster than average.
A different report from Zillow released earlier this month analyzed 1.6 million 2024 home sales and came to a different conclusion — the best time to sell overall was in the final two weeks of May when homes sold for 1.6% more than average, or $5,600 more.
Zillow found that maximizing home prices differed based on location. For example, the best time to list in New York is the first half of May for a boost of up to $9,600 on a typical home, while in San Francisco, listing a home in the second half of April could yield a selling price $38,600 more than average.
Related: Barbara Corcoran Says This Is the One Question to Ask Before Selling Your Home
Experts agree that home buyers and sellers are usually most active in the spring. Buyers are typically trying to find a new home before the school year starts in the fall while sellers benefit from their homes looking more attractive externally with fresh flowers and greenery.
“It’s sort of an ideal time for both buyers and for sellers,” Amanda Pendleton, home trends expert at Zillow, told CNBC.
Home prices have increased recently, with the median price of a home sold in the U.S. in February reaching $398,400, a 3.8% jump from the same time last year. Per NAR, inventory also increased by 17% year-over-year, reaching 1.24 million units in February.
