Zillow was out Thursday with its annual analysis of the best time to list a home for sale.
“Home buyer demand ebbs and flows in a predictable cycle every year, which means that an astute seller can time their listing date like a sailor reading a tide chart to embark at high tide,” said Jeff Tucker, a Zillow economist. “Many sellers are motivated to get their homes on the market by external forces, such as job moves or school years. But to the extent a home seller can target a certain time of year, it’s hard to beat selling in early May, when listings fetch the highest sale prices and move off the market quickly. Late April is not a bad option either, when homes sell even more quickly than in May, thanks to early-bird buyers rushing to beat the crowds. If this winter’s surprisingly hot leadup to home shopping season is any indication, sellers this spring will see plenty of demand and little competing inventory for their listings.”
Zillow pageview data shows that first impressions matter a great deal. Homes average 74 page views their first day on the market. By the fifth day, that’s cut nearly in half to 38 views, and falls all the way to 18 views per day after two weeks.
Saturday is the best day to list your home for sale. Homes listed on Saturday average the most page views in the first week, and 24.8% more than homes listed on Tuesday, the worst day.
Here’s how the markets stack up:
| Metro Area | Best Time to List – Most Money | Median Premium | Best Time to List – Fastest Sale | Median Days Faster |
| United States | Early May | $2,100 | Late April | 7 |
| New York, NY | Late May | $3,500 | Early April | 11.5 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA | Late May | $6,900 | Late April | 6 |
| Chicago, IL | Early May | $3,100 | Early May | 12 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth, TX | Early June | $2,200 | Early June | 3 |
| Philadelphia, PA | Late April | $2,400 | Early May | 9 |
| Houston, TX | Early May | $1,800 | Early April | 6 |
| Washington, DC | Late May | $4,400 | Late April | 9 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale, FL | Early May | $1,800 | Early May | 9 |
| Atlanta, GA | Early June | $1,900 | Early April | 8 |
| Boston, MA | Late May | $7,200 | Late May | 7 |
| San Francisco, CA | Late April | $18,100 | Early February | 4.5 |
| Detroit, MI | Early May | $2,400 | Early March | 9 |
| Riverside, CA | Early May | $4,100 | Late April | 7 |
| Phoenix, AZ | Early May | $2,200 | Late April | 6 |
| Seattle, WA | Early May | $9,500 | Early May | 7.5 |
| Minneapolis-St Paul, MN | Early May | $5,700 | Late April | 7 |
| San Diego, CA | Late March | $8,100 | Early April | 8 |
| St. Louis, MO | Early May | $2,300 | Late April | 10 |
| Tampa, FL | Late April | $1,500 | Early April | 7 |
| Baltimore, MD | Early May | $3,000 | Early April | 12 |
| Denver, CO | Early May | $5,500 | Early February | 6.5 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | Early June | $1,200 | Late April | 12 |
| Portland, OR | Early May | $6,400 | Early April | 10 |
| Charlotte, NC | Early June | $1,800 | Late April | 6.5 |
| Sacramento, CA | Early May | $6,100 | Early April | 9 |
| San Antonio, TX | Late May | $1,500 | Early June | 6 |
| Orlando, FL | Early June | $2,300 | Late March | 7 |
| Cincinnati, OH | Early July | $1,500 | Late April | 9 |
| Cleveland, OH | Early May | $2,400 | Early May | 13 |
| Kansas City, MO | Late May | $2,600 | Late May | 6.5 |
| Las Vegas, NV | Early May | $2,700 | Early March | 7.5 |
| Columbus, OH | Early June | $2,900 | Early June | 9 |
| Indianapolis, IN | Early May | $2,500 | Late April | 8 |
| San Jose, CA | Late April | $24,400 | Late April | 4.5 |
| Austin, TX | Early May | $2,900 | Early May | 4.5 |
