The Best Time to Sell a Home is in the First Half of the Year
Friday, May 3rd, 2024
ATTOM, a leading curator of land, property, and real estate data, today released its annual analysis of the best days of the year to sell a home, which shows that based on home sales over the past 13 years, the months of May, February and April offer the highest seller premiums – making this month the time to sell your home.
An analysis of over 59 million single-family home and condo sales from 2011 to 2023 shows that listing a property in May, February, or April can yield higher seller premiums. The data suggests that from early in the year through summer is not only the busiest season for home buying but also the best time for sellers to list their properties. Therefore, it might be the ideal moment to place your home on the market.
May is Prime Time to Sell: Top Months to Sell a Home Infographic
Best Months to Sell
The analysis also took a more high-level look and showcased how seller premiums faired throughout the year and broke it out by month.
The months realizing the greatest seller premiums were as follows: May (13.1 percent); February (12.8 percent); April (12.5 percent); June (12.4 percent); March (12.2 percent); January (10.6 percent); August (10.3 percent); December (10.0 percent); July (10.0 percent); November (9.5 percent); September (9.5 percent), and October (8.8 percent).
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2011 to 2023 Sales of Single-Family Homes and Condos |
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|
Month |
Number of Sales |
Median Sales Price |
Median AVM |
Seller Premium |
|
May |
5,360,810 |
$ 230,000 |
$ 203,338 |
13.1 % |
|
February |
3,641,631 |
$ 212,000 |
$ 188,000 |
12.8 % |
|
April |
4,880,248 |
$ 225,000 |
$ 200,000 |
12.5 % |
|
June |
5,834,131 |
$ 237,500 |
$ 211,231 |
12.4 % |
|
March |
4,805,396 |
$ 220,000 |
$ 196,000 |
12.2 % |
|
January |
3,748,598 |
$ 210,000 |
$ 189,900 |
10.6 % |
|
August |
5,739,527 |
$ 235,000 |
$ 213,000 |
10.3 % |
|
December |
4,695,330 |
$ 230,000 |
$ 209,000 |
10.0 % |
|
July |
5,611,269 |
$ 235,600 |
$ 214,100 |
10.0 % |
|
November |
4,470,550 |
$ 230,000 |
$ 210,000 |
9.5 % |
|
September |
5,102,736 |
$ 231,750 |
$ 211,722 |
9.5 % |
|
October |
5,118,966 |
$ 228,500 |
$ 210,000 |
8.8 % |
Best Days to Sell
ATTOM also took a deeper dive to uncover the best days to sell a home. The top 20 days fell in the months of May, February, March, and June. Starting with May 27th being the best day to sell a home, with a seller premium of 16.2 percent. Followed by February 25th (15.9 percent); February 17th (15.8 percent); February 15th (15.7 percent); February 22nd(15.5 percent); May 25th (15.4 percent); March 30th (15.2 percent); March 25th (15.1 percent); February 28th (15.0 percent); and February 24th (15.0 percent).
Methodology
For this analysis ATTOM looked at any calendar days in the last thirteen years (2011 to 2023) with at least 11,000 single family home and condo sales. There were 363 days (including leap year data) that matched these criteria, with the three exceptions being Jan. 1, July 4, and Dec. 25. To calculate the premium or discount paid on a given day, ATTOM compared the median sales price for homes with a purchase closing on that day with the median automated valuation model (AVM) for those same homes at the time of sale.
