When is the best time to sell a house?

Nationally, the best time to sell a house to maximize profit is early June, when school is on summer break and the largest number of buyers is out shopping for homes. 

Best month to sell a house

The best month to sell a house has historically been May or even early spring around March. According to the most recent Zillow analysis of annual sales data from 2024, the best month to sell a home is now May. Sellers who listed their properties in the last two weeks of May earned an extra 1.6% on the sale, which amounts to approximately $5,600 for the typical U.S. home.

While sellers typically see higher returns when listing between March 15 and July 31, many factors can influence the timing premium. It’s important to remember that local market circumstances also influence the best time to list your home. Those conditions include job growth, mortgage rates and tax incentives.

Best day to list a house

Previous Zillow research into the best day to list a home found that listing your house on a Thursday could increase the chance of your home selling more quickly and for more money.

Homes listed on a Thursday tended to go pending faster than any other day of the week, all other things being equal. Thursday is close enough to the weekend for buyers to get excited about seeing a new listing as they make plans for touring open houses or new listings with their agent on the weekend.  

Homes listed on a Sunday tended to sit on the market longer than those listed on a Thursday. Saturday and Monday were only marginally better than Sunday, and took longer to sell than a home listed on a Thursday.

The previous research, from 2021, also showed that Thursday listings were slightly more likely to sell above their asking price. The opposite was true for homes listed on Saturday or Sunday.

Seasonality affects when to sell a house

Spring is typically the best time of year to list your home for sale. It’s when buyers tend to come out of winter hibernation and hit the market in droves. 

However, the surge in home prices since 2021, and the rise of mortgage interest rates over the past two years, have created a new kind of seasonality, one where financially strapped buyers flock to the market when rates drop, regardless of the season.

Selling a house in the spring

As you can see from the trends above, people tend to shop for homes as the weather gets warmer, so prepping your home in the winter months to sell in spring usually makes sense. With tax refunds in their pockets, nicer weather for moving in the forecast, and summer break from the kids’ school coming up, it’s easy to see why spring is typically the most popular time to buy and sell.

Selling a house in the summer

Many of the same reasons buyers shop in the spring apply to home buying in summer — warm weather, school breaks, and simply having more hours of sunshine to hit up open houses and take home tours. Of course, summer is also when most people take their vacations, so that might account for a bit of a slowdown. And, there are parts of the country where real estate is slow in the summer because it’s simply too hot to shop comfortably.

Selling a house in the fall

Many buyers shopping in the early fall may be trying to move in time to get settled before the school year picks up or before the weather gets bad, and that feeling of urgency can be a benefit to sellers. However, many off-season shoppers are moving because of a job transfer, layoff, short sale, or family issue, so they can also be more sensitive to price.

Selling a house in the winter

While winter is traditionally the slowest season for home sales, if your climate is warm year-round (think Florida and the Southwest), your window for selling may even be better in the winter months as snowbirds flock to the sunshine.

Sell in peak market conditions

Of course, seasonality isn’t the only factor to keep in mind when deciding if it’s the right time to sell your house. It’s also important to consider the state of your local housing market, like whether it’s a buyer’s market or seller’s market.

Selling in a buyer’s market

A buyer’s market occurs when there are more homes for sale than people looking to buy. When inventory is high, sellers can expect their home to stay on the market longer before receiving an offer, and you may have to sell below list price or make additional concessions to the buyer.

Selling in a seller’s market

In a seller’s market, there are more potential home buyers than there are available homes. A seller's market is the ideal time to sell your home, as you can expect it to sell more quickly and you’re more likely to receive multiple offers and sell for full price (or above).

Selling when mortgage rates drop

Mortgage interest rates have bounced around after hitting historic lows in 2021, and remain unpredictable — and at times, volatile. The higher the rates, the farther a buyer’s budget has to stretch to get the home they want. When rates are low, homebuyers have more buying power and are especially more likely to be shopping and buying.

Sell when you're ready

When it comes down to it, the best time to sell is the best time for you. All kinds of personal factors can play into your decision to sell, from job changes to family changes to just generally feeling ready. Keep the following factors in mind:

Lifestyle changes: Job changes, relocations, a growing family, and downsizing are the most common reasons people decide to sell. Job-related moves often require a stricter timeline, whereas family-related moves can sometimes be timed to take advantage of beneficial market factors.

Emotional preparedness: No matter the reason for your move, it’s important to make sure you’re emotionally prepared. Even if you’re moving for a logical reason — for example, you’re a recent empty-nester downsizing after your kids are grown — it can be hard to let go of the memories associated with your family home. Give yourself time.

Financial benefits: If your home has gained substantial equity, the value you’ve built may be enough to get you a healthy down payment on your dream home or give you a comfortable cushion for retirement.

How long does it take to list a home?

The typical seller spends an average of seven months seriously thinking about selling before actually listing, according to the Zillow Consumer Housing Trends Report 2024.  Plus, they typically make at least a couple of home improvements.

With that in mind, you can typically expect to reserve at least two months for preparing to sell, which will give you time to research your local market, hire an agent you trust, clean your home thoroughly and complete any minor repairs.