The decision to sell a home isn't one to take lightly. If you sell your home, you'll need to move elsewhere, which could result in some serious uprooting for you and the people who live with you.
Even if you're not selling a home you live in yourself -- for example, you're a real estate investor looking to unload an income property -- it's still important to list that home at the right time. But if your goal is to maximize your profits in the course of selling your home, you may not want to delay. Here are three reasons why.
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1. It pays to sell when the competition is low
As of the end of June, there was a three-month supply of existing homes on the market, according to the National Association of Realtors. That's an improvement from recent months. But it's also well below the four-to-six-month supply that's generally needed to satisfy buyer demand.
Because there's still a shortage of available homes, now's a perfect time to list yours. If you go that route, you may find that your home the subject of a bidding war, which is likely to drive your contract price upward.
Now it may be quite some time until real estate inventory picks up enough to equalize the housing market. But is it possible that we'll have a four-to-six-month supply of homes in a year from now? Absolutely. And it doesn't make sense to wait for that to happen.
2. You may want to get ahead of rising mortgage rates
Mortgage rates are up substantially from this time last year. And with the Federal Reserve continuing to implement interest rate hikes to combat inflation, we could see borrowing rates across a range of consumer categories increase in the coming year.
If mortgage rates continue trending upward, it could drive buyers out of the market. And that's a situation it pays to get ahead of by listing your home sooner rather than later.
3. It pays to list before economic conditions worsen
Right now, the U.S. economy may be in a recession based on a technicality (two consecutive quarterly declines in gross domestic product). But from a jobs perspective, it's not acting like it.
In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statistics just released its July jobs report, showing a massive gain of 528,000 jobs. All told, at this point, the economy has now regained all jobs shed in the course of the pandemic. And when jobs are abundant, homebuying becomes an option for more people.
If economic conditions worsen, though, layoffs could start coming down the pike. That could, in turn, force would-be buyers to put their home searches on hold. And that, too, is a situation best avoided. As such, it pays to list your home now, while jobs are still plentiful.
Don't wait
If your goal is to command a respectable price for your home, now's really the time to act. Take some time to research your options for finding a real estate agent, or put your listing together if you'll be selling your home solo. Delaying could mean losing out on a lot of money -- and kicking yourself after the fact.
