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Late April Is the Best Time to List a Home For Sale

Late April Is the Best Time to List a Home For Sale

  • Late April is a sweet spot for sellers; nationwide, homes listed during that period have the highest chance of selling fast and fetching more than the asking price. This is from a Redfin and Home Economics analysis.
  • Real estate is local. On the West Coast, March is typically the best time to put a home on the market; on the East Coast, May tends to be best.
  • The picture is more complex for buyers: House hunters have the most homes to choose from in late April, but they get the best deals in July.

SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
The best time to list a U.S. home for sale is the end of April, according to a new report from Redfin, the real estate brokerage powered by Rocket, and Home Economics. Sellers are most likely to sell their home above the asking price, and to sell a home quickly, when they list during that period.

The advantages of listing in late April:

Sellers get stronger offers

  • They’re more likely to sell above the asking price. Homes listed at the end of April are 18% more likely to sell above their original asking price than the rest of the year—the highest likelihood of all 52 weeks.
  • Prices are higher. The median home-sale price is 4% higher for homes listed at the end of April than the yearly average sale price, the biggest premium of the year. That’s because there are more buyers and more competition—and also partly because better homes tend to be listed in the spring.

Homes sell faster

  • They’re more likely to sell within 2 weeks. Homes are 17% more likely to sell in two weeks at the end of April than the yearly average, also the highest likelihood of the year.
  • They spend less time on the market. Homes listed in late April spend about 9% fewer days on market than the yearly average.

Sellers face less competition

  • There are fewer homes for buyers to choose from. Sellers face less competition at the end of April than later in the spring or over the summer. There are typically 8% fewer homes for sale at the end of April than the peak reached in late summer. As spring goes on, the total number of homes for sale increases, peaking in the summer, giving buyers more choices and upping competition among sellers.

“Late April hits a sweet spot for home sellers: buyers are out in force, but the market isn’t yet flooded with competing listings,” said Aziz Sunderji, housing economist and founder of data visualization consultancy Home Economics. “For sellers, timing can meaningfully shape the outcome of their home sale. Listing in that late-April window can help generate stronger early interest and create the kind of competition that leads to faster sales and better terms. Sellers who list earlier in the spring may miss peak demand, while those who wait until later risk getting lost in a growing pool of listings. If you’re preparing to sell, it’s worth aligning your timeline—pricing, staging, and marketing—so you’re ready to hit the market during this brief but advantageous window.”

Sellers should keep in mind that this analysis identifies the best time to list their home based on general trends, and assumes a stable market. The best time could shift to a different period in a year when the market experiences dramatic, unexpected shifts.

Additionally, the best time to sell a home is different for different people. Selling (or buying) a home is typically the biggest financial decision people make in their lives, and personal factors matter in terms of timing. For someone who is offered their dream job in another state in September, for instance, listing their home in the fall probably makes more sense than listing in April.

It’s also worth noting that most home sellers are also buyers. That means many sellers factor in the best time to buy when deciding when to sell. They may want to sell earlier in the season rather than later, so they have more time to find their next home.

In California, the Best Time to List Is Before Spring Even Starts. In Parts of the East Coast, It’s Just Before Memorial Day.

The best time to list a home for sale varies from metro to metro. Generally, the optimal time to list is earlier on the West Coast and in Texas, and later in the Northeast and the Rust Belt. This is based on the same metrics Redfin used to calculate the national best time to list: The time of year when sellers have the best chance of selling their home faster and for more money.

  • Places where the prime time to sell is March:
    • San Jose, CA: Middle of March

    • San Diego and Washington, D.C.: Mid-to-late March

    • Seattle; San Francisco; Portland, OR; Oakland, CA; and Denver: Late March

  • Places where the prime time to sell is May or June:
    • West Palm Beach, FL: Mid-to-late June

    • Philadelphia: Middle of May

    • Las Vegas, Milwaukee and New Brunswick, NJ: Beginning of May

Real estate is local. In places like California and Texas, the spring market tends to kick off earlier thanks to milder weather and a longer home-shopping season, so sellers who list in March are better positioned to capture motivated buyers before competition builds. Markets in the Northeast often heat up later in the year, when the snow has melted and warmer days are bringing house hunters out of hibernation.

“The best week to list isn’t one-size-fits-all. Sellers should think locally,” Sunderji said. “Pay attention to when inventory typically ramps up, and when local buyers are most active. Listing just ahead of that surge—whether that’s March in Silicon Valley or May in Milwaukee—can help your home stand out, attract more serious buyers, and sell quickly for the price you want.”

Timing Matters—But It Matters More in Some Parts of the Country Than Others

The best time to sell a home—and buy a home—varies from metro to metro, but the swings are bigger in some parts of the U.S. than others. In the southern part of the country, where weather tends to be warmer, the swing in how many new listings hit the market by season is fairly small. In the northern part of the country, which has more extreme weather, the swing in new listings is bigger. Another important factor is supply: Highly populated areas with limited supply tend to be more seasonal.

The metros with the least seasonal housing markets, i.e. where the seasonal swing in listings is smaller, are in Florida. Tampa is the least seasonal of all. Next come Fort Lauderdale, Miami, West Palm Beach and Orlando. The next two are also located in places with warm weather throughout the year: Phoenix and Las Vegas.

On the other end of the spectrum, the places with the most seasonal metros are either in colder climates or they’re in the Bay Area. San Francisco has the most seasonal market in the nation. Next come Boston, Seattle, San Jose, CA and Minneapolis.

“The fact that the Bay Area has the most seasonal housing market shows that seasonality isn’t just about weather—it’s also about supply,” said Asad Khan, a senior economist at Redfin. “In places like San Francisco and San Jose, where there are a lot of house hunters and limited inventory, timing matters a lot. It becomes a bit like musical chairs: Sellers want to list when they’ll have the best chance of finding their next home, so everyone converges during the same window. In places with more inventory, like Detroit or Columbus, OH, buyers can be more flexible, which gives sellers more flexibility, too, dampening those seasonal swings even though the winters are colder.”

Buyers Get More Choices Earlier in the Year, But Better Deals Later

The picture is more complex for homebuyers. Buyers need to balance choice and competition. More inventory to choose from improves the chance of finding the home that’s right for them. But competition creates more urgency and requires stronger offers to win a home.

Three key moments for homebuyers:

  • Most new listings. The flow of new listings of homes for sale typically peaks in late spring and continues through early summer. This is when picky buyers are most likely to see the widest selection of listings right when they hit the market.
  • Most inventory. The bullet point above is about brand-new listings; this one is about “fresh” listings—those that have been on the market for no more than 60 days. The number of fresh listings typically peaks in mid-summer. This is when flexible buyers with more time have the biggest selection to choose from.
  • Best deals. Discounts off a home’s original asking price—through price drops and/or negotiations between buyer and seller—grow in late summer and peak in early fall. But discounts typically plateau or shrink heading into winter, even as inventory declines. This moment captures the last point when both choice and discounts are working in the buyer’s favor. Winter isn’t an ideal time for bargain hunters because by the time it rolls around, sellers may be more likely to wait for spring’s new buyers than make concessions.

“The right time to purchase a home depends on a buyer’s flexibility,” Khan said. “New listings peak in late spring, but that’s also when competition between buyers is most intense. House hunters should shop earlier if time is tight and finding the right home in the right location is the top priority. But for more flexible buyers, inventory will grow until mid-summer. Buyers also have more negotiating power heading into the fall, and while inventory is somewhat picked over, there are still quite a few homes to choose from. For many buyers, the sweet spot may be somewhere in between.”

To view the full report, including charts, please visit:

https://www.redfin.com/news/best-time-to-sell-buy-home

About Redfin

Redfin is a technology-driven real estate company with the country’s most-visited real estate brokerage website. As part of Rocket Companies (NYSE: RKT), Redfin is creating an integrated homeownership platform from search to close to make the dream of homeownership more affordable and accessible for everyone. Redfin’s clients can see homes first with on-demand tours, easily apply for a home loan with Rocket Mortgage, and save thousands in fees while working with a top local agent.

You can find more information about Redfin and get the latest housing market data and research at https://www.redfin.com/news. For more information about Rocket Companies, visit https://www.rocketcompanies.com.

Contact Redfin Journalist Services:

Tana Kelley

[email protected]

KEYWORDS: Washington United States North America

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Construction & Property Residential Building & Real Estate

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