Back HomeBeat the Spring Competition – Now Is a Great Time to Sell
January 23rd, 2017 by keithandkinsey
Most people don’t think about selling their house until the sun is shining, the snow has melted, and it’s 70 degrees outside. While it’s true the peak month in Dane county for home closings is June, we always see a significant jump in closings in March, and the number continues to rise into April. In fact, if you combine March and April home sales, the combination typically exceeds our peak month by 20%. What does this mean to you? It means there are a significant number of home sales that occur based on homes that are active in January, February, and March (since it often takes 30-60 days to close).
Okay, so we now know homes do sell in Wisconsin prior to Spring, but why wouldn’t you wait until May to list your house to try to hit the peak season? One word, INVENTORY. Listing your home in May is what everybody else does! That means there is significantly more housing inventory and competition at that time. As of today (Jan 19) Dane county housing inventory is very low, at 2.1 months. Most people in the business consider anything below 4 months of inventory a seller’s market.
Home buyers will have more inventory to choose from and more options in April and May. At that time, a neighbor down the street may have a home for sale, and if their house has just a touch nicer finishes for a similar price, it will probably sell first. Of course, everybody’s situation is different. You may have kids in school, and you don’t want to move until the end of the school year. Don’t worry, I’m confident it will be a great Spring and Summer for home sales in our area too. Your home will still sell during the summer, just be aware, you will have more competition at that time.
In the last two weeks we’ve seen a dramatic increase in the number of showings scheduled on our listings as well as an increase in the number of buyers we are working with wanting to see homes. So I know the buyers are out there looking, and I really think February and March are going to be a great time to sell this year. If you have been thinking about moving, now may be the perfect time.
