How Long Does It Actually Take To Sell a Home?
Are you ready to sell your home and wondering how long it will take to actually sell? Well, that’s a great question and it’s important to remember that selling a home is a process. Sometimes it’s quick and sometimes, it’s just not.
As a real estate agent in Morris County, New Jersey! I get it! Ideally, when you’re ready to sell your home, you want everything to happen quickly and seamlessly –and I want that for you!
There are so many moving pieces to selling a home, all of which can determine how quickly your home sells. Having an expert realtor can save you time, energy, and stress that can occur during the home selling process. But are you wondering how long it takes to sell a home? Well, there isn’t an easy answer to that question.
According to the National Association of Realtors, 39 days was the average time a house remained on the market in August 2022.
If you’re thinking about (or ready to) put your house on the market, it’s essential to make sure you are fully aware of and prepared for what it takes to actually sell a home, so you have an accurate timeframe of when to expect to sell your home.
In this post, I want to cover how long it takes to sell a home, what to expect in the selling process, what can affect the timeline, and how to mitigate any of these issues so you can sell your home ASAP.
How long do most houses take to sell?
Each home is unique. Therefore, each selling process will be unique, too. There are a lot of moving pieces and factors that can affect the timing of the sale. While one home might sell in three days, another could take 4 months.
Selling a house is a process that includes many stages including:
Listing the property
Marketing the property
Schedule showings
Host an open house (optional)
Accept an offer
Inspections and appraisals
Negotiations
Close!
What factors does it depend on?
There are many factors that can determine how quickly (or how slowly) your home sells. This includes what neighborhood the home is in, your home’s current condition, the local housing market, the season, marketing, and even your realtor!
Asking price
The asking price is an important piece of the home selling process and can drastically impact how quickly your house sells.
The value of your home and the listing price need to match up, otherwise, you risk slowing down the sales process. A great realtor will know the local housing market and what your home is worth and come up with an appropriate listing price that’s the best deal for you and likely to sell.
Your home’s condition
When your realtor determines a marketable asking price, they’ve valued your home based on its current condition and whether or not it needs repairs, appliance upgrades, or maintenance. If a house needs a lot of work done, the asking price will reflect this, and vice versa when the house is up-to-date and in great condition. The condition of your home and the asking price don’t correlate, the sale of your home could stall.
Your home’s location
The location of your property or home can have a direct impact on how long it takes to sell it based solely on desirability. If your home isn’t in a desired location or neighborhood, it might not sell very quickly.
A desirable location can include great school districts, lake views, crime rates, nearby restaurants or grocery stores, etc. While you can’t build schools or restaurants, you can make the home itself as desirable as possible with upgrades, room staging, landscaping and more.
Buyers’ market vs. sellers’ market
Knowing the market is key to determining how long it will take to sell a home. Your realtor will know both the local and national real estate market and whether or not we’re currently in a seller’s market or a buyer’s market.
Seller’s Market: The current demand exceeds the housing supply. This market is better for the seller (you).
Buyer’s Market: The housing supply exceeds the current demand. The market is better for the buyer.
Local market conditions
Your local housing market will also determine how fast your home sells. Realtor.com has a great resource to see what the local market trends are in your area and how fast homes have historically been selling there.
Seasonality
The season or month you list your home can have a big impact on how fast (or slow) your home sells. While winter is typically a slower season in New Jersey, the advantage for sellers is that there is less competition which means more eyes on your property. If you are selling a family home, you might want to keep in mind when school semesters start and end as parents tend to wait until school breaks to move a family from one house to another.
Your real estate agent
The efforts of your real estate agent can often make a world of difference in how long your house sits on the market. Through marketing efforts, connections, open house, negotiating an acceptable offer for both you and the buyer, and other factors, your realtor can be a huge help in getting the ball rolling on the sale of your home.
Your marketing efforts
As mentioned, marketing is a vital piece of exposing your home to ideal buyers and ultimately selling your home for top dollar. From creating beautiful marketing pieces after professional photography to digital marketing exposure on multiple platforms, the way your home is presented to the market is KEY. It’s important to develop a strategy that keeps in mind pricing, location, local market trends, and timeline. Now, more than ever, the expertise of a real estate agent is vital in the sale of your home.
Number of days on the market
The longer your home is on the market, the more likely it is that potential buyers will assume there is an issue with the house, whether there is or not. Why else would a house be on the market so long?
Maybe you’re actually wondering why would a house be on the market for a long time? Well, there are a few reasons that a house might be on the market for a long time. The most obvious reason is that you’re trying to sell your home in a buyer’s market. That means the supply of homes far outnumbers the demand. When there aren’t enough families looking for homes to buy, some house will end up on the market longer than expected.
How do you make sure your house sells fast?
If you want your home to sell fast, I have a few simple recommendations to help you make sure your home sells.
Hire an expert real estate agent
Hire a full-time local expert that specializes in residential sales in your area.. Realtors know the local housing market and can help you identify and fix any issues with your home that might stall the selling of it. With their experience, they also will know the average days a house in your neighborhood will be on the market, or at the very least, will be able to calculate it accurately.
Prepare your home
In general, a house in great condition often sells faster than one that isn’t. Buyers don’t usually want to put in the time and money into repairs if they don’t have to. A move in ready home is ideal.
If you have small repairs or upgrades you could make, do them! It can be fixing (or upgrading) light fixtures, door handles, leaky faucets, broken appliances, etc.
If your house needs a touch up or looks a little dated, repainting rooms or touching up exterior wood panels can make a world of difference!
Minimize any clutter you have around the house. Either throw things away, donate them or hire a storage unit for a few months to keep things in while your home is open for showing.
Hire a weekly cleaning service. Clean windows, counters, showers, and faucets can leave your home viewers (and potential buyers) with a better impression than if you left them dirty.
Don’t forget about the exterior of your home! As mentioned, repainting can help, but also, make sure your lawn is in order. Mow it, plant some flowers, trim the tree back if it’s gotten overgrown- –in general, just make it look presentable!
When you’re home is presentable, your realtor can start hosting open houses! If you want to know more about the open house process and what it entails, I encourage you to read my guide on how open houses work for sellers and buyers.
Hire a professional photographer
Your house will likely be listed on sites like Zillow, MLS, etc. Most home buyers will start their search online and if your photos don’t catch their eye, they probably won’t jump on the chance to view your home in person. Professional photos (and a lot of them) can catch their attention and very likely sell your home quickly.
Research & evaluate your asking price
One of the fastest ways to stall the sale of your home is to overprice your home. So it’s important to make sure your home is priced appropriately from the beginning. A realtor can help you determine what’s a good value for your home based on the local market, so your home sells fast.
All of these tips should help your home sell faster!
How long does it take to prepare a house to sell?
Depending on how fast you can make the upgrades and repairs (if needed) on your home and potentially hire a professional room stager, you could be looking at a few months to prepare your house to sell. Your home’s current condition is the biggest factor in estimating how long it will take to sell your home. If it’s great condition and ready to go, your house could go on the market and sell in days.
What’s typically the worst time of year to sell a house?
Historic market conditions, the timing of the school year, and weather will help you determine when you should – and should not sell your home.
If you live in northern Michigan, the middle of winter probably isn’t the best time to sell a home. Likewise, early Autumn or late winter might not be great times since kids will have just started that semester and many parents don’t like to break up their school terms with a big house move.
So, what’s typically the best month to sell your house? For most housing markets, the best time to sell a home is early May. This is when you will see homes sell fast and for a higher price as kids will have just finished school (if you are selling a family home), and summer is a better time to move house weather-wise.
There are a lot of moving pieces that go into the process of selling a home, so it’s impossible to know exactly how long your home will take to sell. But hopefully, now you know what to expect and things you and your realtor can do now so you can pave the way for a swift and easy sale!
If you’re ready to get started, I’d be happy to answer any questions you have about the entire home selling and buying process. Get in contact with me so we can chat more about your needs!