This Is the Best Time of Year to Sell Your Home, According to Zillow
Key Takeaways
- Zillow, a real estate marketplace, released an analysis of 2024 home sales.
- Based on its research, the last two weeks of May are the best time to list a home.
- The marketplace also found that homeowners can sell their home for more by maximizing exposure.
Various factors go into selling a home, including when to put it on the market. To help potential sellers with this process, Zillow put together a report of the best time to sell a home—and it largely depends on where in the country you live.
On March 5, Zillow, a real estate marketplace, released an analysis of 2024 home sales. The findings revealed that homes listed in the last two weeks of May sold for 1.6 percent more—a $5,600 boost on a typical U.S. home. This is when people are looking for a summer vacation home or a new place to live before the school year starts in the fall—making it the optimal time for sellers to list their homes.
That said, the ideal time to list your home can vary depending on the metropolitan area you live in. The marketplace found a wide range in the sale price premiums associated with homes listed during their area’s peak period. For example, sellers in San Jose, California who listed their homes for sale in the second half of March, pocked 5.3 percent more than any other time of year.
Looking to sell your home soon? To help potential sellers understand when to list their homes, Zillow put together the following chart, which details the price premium and dollar boost on a typical home during these times. However, if you don’t have time to wait for the right week and month to sell, the marketplace notes that you can sell your home for more by maximizing exposure, focusing on screen appeal, and highlighting in-demand features.
| Metropolitan Area | Best Time to List | Price Premium | Dollar Boost on a Typical Home |
| United States | Second half of May | 1.6 % | $5,600 |
| New York, NY | First half of May | 1.4 % | $9,600 |
| Los Angeles, CA | First half of April | 3.9 % | $39,300 |
| Chicago, IL | Second half of May | 3.0 % | $10,000 |
| Dallas, TX | First half of April | 1.9 % | $7,000 |
| Houston, TX | Second half of April | 1.1 % | $3,300 |
| Washington, DC | Second half of April | 2.4 % | $14,600 |
| Philadelphia, PA | First half of June | 2.2 % | $8,100 |
| Miami, FL | Second half of July | 2.0 % | $11,500 |
| Atlanta, GA | First half of June | 1.2 % | $4,700 |
| Boston, MA | Second half of May | 2.9 % | $20,800 |
| Phoenix, AZ | Second half of November | 1.4 % | $6,400 |
| San Francisco, CA | Second half of April | 3.2 % | $38,600 |
| Riverside, CA | Second half of June | 1.5 % | $8,600 |
| Detroit, MI | Second half of May | 3.2 % | $8,000 |
| Seattle, WA | Second half of March | 3.1 % | $24,000 |
| Minneapolis, MN | Second half of May | 2.9 % | $11,100 |
| San Diego, CA | Second half of March | 2.0 % | $20,100 |
| Tampa, FL | First half of October | 1.8 % | $6,900 |
| Denver, CO | First half of May | 2.6 % | $15,500 |
| Baltimore, MD | Second half of June | 2.0 % | $7,900 |
| St. Louis, MO | Second half of May | 3.3 % | $8,300 |
| Orlando, FL | First half of May | 0.9 % | $3,700 |
| Charlotte, NC | First half of May | 1.5 % | $5,700 |
| San Antonio, TX | First half of May | 1.3 % | $3,500 |
| Portland, OR | First half of June | 2.0 % | $10,900 |
| Sacramento, CA | First half of May | 1.7 % | $9,900 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | Second half of May | 2.6 % | $5,500 |
| Cincinnati, OH | Second half of May | 2.3 % | $6,900 |
| Austin, TX | Second half of March | 2.3 % | $10,400 |
| Las Vegas, NV | First half of May | 1.6 % | $7,100 |
| Kansas City, MO | First half of May | 3.4 % | $10,400 |
| Columbus, OH | First half of May | 3.4 % | $11,100 |
| Indianapolis, IN | First half of June | 2.0 % | $5,400 |
| Cleveland, OH | Second half of June | 3.7 % | $8,600 |
| San Jose, CA | Second half of March | 5.3 % | $93,200 |
