Myth Busting – Is there a ‘best’ time to sell your property?

It is a question we have been asked many times before.  When is the best time to sell?

Traditional wisdom would have it that the spring is a great time to sell – and, to an extent, that does have some truth in it.  We often see an upturn in people interested in moving in the springtime – once the weather starts to improve, days start getting longer and everything starts to look a bit greener after winter, many of us start to put our moving plans into action.  Early summer is also thought to be a good time to sell, after all, everything looks better in the sunshine!   Then there is the Autumn (get it done before Christmas) and the new year, (fresh starts and resolutions) both often also cited as a good time to sell.  So, that covers much of the year!

We would encourage you to look at things in a different way and think about when would be the best time to sell your house rather than a house…

Think about the aspects of your house which are positive and whether those positives are better illustrated at a particular time of year. For instance, if your home has the benefit of a wonderful garden which you utilise as an extension to your property when the weather allows, the summer is likely to be the best time to show that off to potential purchasers, or perhaps your garden is an early bloomer and high summer leaves your outside space looking a bit parched and past its best… Is there a time in the year when your garden benefits from more sun?  For me personally, the later summer is better for my garden (for much of Spring part of it is in shade for a large part of the day).  Perhaps on the other hand you live in a property with small windows, a lack of outside space and limited natural light, in which case you may be better emphasising the cosiness of your property at a time when people are less concerned with what is going on outside – warm lighting and a crackling fire may be a better selling point than poor internal light on a bright summer’s day when a lack of outside space may feel like more of an issue.  Maybe your property has better views when the trees are bare.  If you live in a rural area, perhaps in proximity to a busy farm, would it be better to look at selling when there is less agricultural activity going on?

Whilst we don’t want to go against the traditional wisdom of estate agents (we are, after all, a wise bunch), we think it is too simplistic to say that there are good and bad times to market your property.  For every perceived advantage at a particular time of year such as ‘there are more buyers in Spring’ there is a counter argument ‘there may also be more sellers and therefore greater competition’  Conversely, for every perceived disadvantage for selling at a particular time ‘no one is looking for property in the winter’, there are potential advantages – ‘those who are looking are likely to be serious buyers’ and, as we have mentioned above, your property may not be at it’s best advantage at those times of year which have traditionally been thought to be ‘best’ for sellers.  Not to mention, life does not always go to plan and people are often looking for property at unexpected times for a whole host of reasons.

In summary then, if you are thinking of selling, we would recommend that you contact us at an early stage to discuss your plans and get a free market appraisal for your property – whatever the time of year.   We will give you our best advice about the market as we see it at the time and are always happy to advise you on the way we think will be best to market your property to emphasise its strengths.  For more information and advice on selling, visit our selling with Seddons page or contact us.