As it's the season of decluttering and new beginnings, it's not shocking that spring is typically regarded as the most popular time of year for the housing market. The warm weather makes the daunting task of moving a bit more manageable—plus, moving in springtime ensures you’ll have plenty of time to be settled into your new home before winter hits. Realtor.com can attest to the fact that it's the ideal season when it comes to the housing market: The real estate site's latest report claimed the best week of 2024 to sell a home is April 14-20.
Realtor.com estimated that anyone listing their home during the week of the 14th could make up to $34,000 more than they would have at the beginning of this year. The reasoning, according to the report, predicts this week to be high in buyer competition and low in seller competition, increasing demand—which should also result in listed homes selling faster than usual.
“Spring is generally the high season for home sales, and buyers tend to be more plentiful earlier in the year,” said Danielle Hale, Realtor.com’s Chief Economist, in a press release. “Because listing a home is a process, sellers should start preparing now so they can list their home at a time when conditions are likely to be most favorable, giving them the best chance of selling their home quickly and at a competitive price.”
Most home sellers only take a month (or even less) to prepare their home before listing it on the market, according to Realtor.com. That means this announcement comes just in time for homeowners who have been thinking of selling: Anyone hoping to get their home on the market for the week of April 14 has nearly a month to do so from the time of the report’s official release on March 21.
Realtor.com considered several factors in their predictions for this year's "best week." Historically, the data shows the prices of listed homes during the week of April 14 have been around 1% higher than average. Additionally, Realtor.com typically sees a major increase in demand during this week. In 2023, the week averaged over 22% more views per listing than average. Overall, it has an average listing view increase of over 18%.
The real estate site also noted that homes sold around nine days faster—a factor that can seriously cut down on the stress of selling a home.
Although you might think that all of these benefits would cause other sellers to leap into action ahead of April 14, Realtor.com predicts that this won’t exactly be the case. In fact, it expects nearly 14% fewer sellers on the market than average. This also helps make homes on the market during this period even more competitive.
Realtor.com’s official report offers a few tips to help potential sellers figure out the best time for them to list. For example, it notes that home prices will continue to rise, peaking around the end of June (around Zillow's Best Week to Sell of 2024). But that doesn’t recommend mean you should sell then—there will be nearly a 50% increase in new sellers compared to the start of the year. This can make it difficult for new summer listings to compete with the rest of the market.
Realtor.com also says the demand for homes will rise as soon as mortgage rates fall—and fortunately, they’re predicted to ease up later in the year. If you’re wondering whether or not it makes sense for you to sell now or wait until mortgage rates drop, Realtor.com also offers an estimation tool that can be used to determine your home’s value over time.
If you’re hoping to find even more information on the best week of 2024 to sell your home, Realtor.com’s official report is available on their website. You can also view the methodology they used to make their predictions. The site also offers real estate tools you can use to help determine when it’s right for you to sell (or buy) your home.