It’s a common refrain in love and real estate: “timing is everything.” While we agree in some respect, our view of timing in real estate is less cut-and-dry than some might assume. Rather than “timing the market,” which has become synonymous with waiting until spring to list a home, we encourage our clients to tailor their real estate timing to their personal situation, not the other way around.
Here are the key components to consider as you decide when to list your home for sale or start looking for your next house (hint: it has nothing to do with springtime!).
Your Financial Readiness
Pushing for a spring purchase or waiting until springtime for a home upgrade makes very little sense unless this timing just happens to align with your financial reality. When it comes to determining the best timing for home buying, consider the equity in your current home, the state of your debt to income ratio, and the amounts in your savings accounts rather than the date on the calendar. Likewise, if selling your home so that you can upgrade is a top priority, there’s no need to wait on the calendar to hit a certain date before getting it listed,
Your Job Location
Many people need to sell or buy homes because of a relocation or new job. It’s perfectly smart to time your real estate activities according to your work and the time you’ll need to move, rather than waiting for spring and letting your house sit empty in the meantime.
Your Family’s Schedule
Whether your family is growing or you have kids in school, the timing involved in children’s lives often plays a role in deciding the best time to move. For many families, moving during the spring makes much less sense than listing and moving in the summer months — and that’s perfectly fine!
We talk to many clients who try to fit their lives into the mold of listing in the spring in order to “time the market.” However, this approach rarely results in measurable increased success for the listing. In fact, because many sellers do wait until spring, you may face an especially saturated market by waiting. All the while, your perfect buyer might be browsing listings this weekend!
Your real estate decisions are personal and specific to you. Timing is no exception. Your own financial and family situation should come before any focus on timing the market.
If you have any questions about your specific listing or how to analyze any of the components discussed above, we’d love to talk through it with you! Give us a call anytime at 719-337-7254 or 720-498-9592.
