Timing the real estate market can be like trying to time the stock market. Quite simply, there are never any guarantees. We can, however, look at home sales data objectively and pinpoint the peak season based on past performance.

If you consider only the number of homes that sold in a month (see the first chart below), you might determine that the best time to sell is August. Dig a little deeper, however, and it seems clear that listing in May will net you the highest price. See the second chart that lists average Central Ohio home sale prices throughout 2021. Keep in mind that a sale that closes in June was likely the result of listing the home for sale in May. In coming to this conclusion, we assume that most transactions were financed and required 30 days to close from the date the contract was accepted.

You might wonder why the the number of home sales and sales prices don’t correlate directly. The simple explanation is that there were fewer homes with which to compete during the spring months. The number of active listings (not pending sale) in April 2021 was 1,939 according to the April 2021 Columbus Realtors Local Market Update. This compares to 3,079 active homes for sale in July.

CONCLUSION: BEST TIME TO LIST A HOME FOR SALE IN CENTRAL OHIO

April



Home sales by month for 2021 in Central Ohio. Data courtesy of Columbus Realtors.



Average sale price by month for 2021 in Central Ohio. Data courtesy of Columbus Realtors.

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Wayne Henry

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Equal parts dog lover, real estate aficionado, social butterfly and music enthusiast. My idea of a good day is putting the pups in the car, turning up the tunes, sharing funny stories and looking at some houses. If this sounds like fun, let's start a journey that ends with a lifetime friendship and a new home for you.