When is the Right Time to Sell Your Home?

Story By: Jaren Reece, Housing Co-editor

Photos By: Riley Simianer

With the considerably high market, equally lofty interest rates and inventory being so incredibly low, it might be a challenging task to figure out when the right time to sell your home might be. Thankfully, the housing market in Grand Junction seems to be cooling down and more people are going to start looking into buying a home. In contrast to the demand going up, the supply will need to remain constant in order to meet the needs of the consumers. But in order to prepare to sell a house, one must understand the dynamics of the market and be firm on their decision to do so.

This leads to the question “When is the right time to sell your home?”

“Real Estate is a seasonal transaction cycle, in the Spring and Summer, things generally move faster whereas in the winter things tend to move a little slower.” said Re/Max 4000 agent and Grand Junction native Joe Silzell.

During the winter and fall, people aren’t as focused on making large caliber purchases such as homes. Parents are preparing their children for school and saving up for the holidays, buying a home isn’t at the top of their priorities.

All realtors agree that the seasons of Spring and Summer are the best times to sell because buyers are the most active and have the most amount of time on their hands. April, May, June and July, the “warm weather months” in Grand Junction, are the naturally the busiest months of the year for agents.

Former realtor Jackie Wenzel backed up Silzell’s statement was able to provide her input on the matter.”A lot of people don’t like moving in the winter because it’s annoying to move things in the cold so early spring is the typical time for most to list” Wenzel said, “it begins to slow down again when kids start going back to school.”

The state of the market in the area is also crucial in influencing people’s decisions to sell. So for example, the average cost of a house in Grand Junction currently is close to $400,000, which compared to about 5 years ago, is almost $200,000 more. It is intimidating for home buyers to see a figure this high, but it is even more discouraging for the seller because a lot of questions begin to come to mind when their home doesn’t sell right away,

Katie Chapman Schmaltz, a realtor for Chapman Real Estate, said that there are a multitude of factors that influence a market.”The time of the year is very important but so is the location” Chapman Schmaltz said, “the market is different everywhere you go and it fluctuates all of the time. For example here in Junction, the average listing price in April won’t be the same in May and so on.”

The good news is that the housing market will always be constant, someone will always be interested in buying a home no matter the cost, curb appeal or history, your house will eventually sell. 

It is also worth noting that it is better to sell sooner rather than later with the current state of the market. There is very low inventory at the moment, but at the same time there are still plenty of buyers. Getting your home on the market now means that you won’t have so much competition to deal with later when more people are selling their homes. 

The most important factors to consider when you are preparing to sell your home however, are your own personal thoughts, feelings and circumstances. The most common instance is that the lifestyle you live demands that you move to a different house. Financial situation doesn’t always dictate where you live. Rockethomes gives a few examples; say two parents no longer need to maintain a three bedroom, four bathroom home since their children moved away to college, or if the neighborhood you live in doesn’t have a school nearby and your children are ready to start school. Another instance is that when people finish remodeling their home, they find that it isn’t conducive to their lifestyle and want a change. Remodels that are put on the marketplace typically sell faster because the buyers understand that a major project was recently completed on the home.

Finally, it might be time to sell your home because you simply can’t afford to live in it anymore. While it may seem disappointing to downsize, it might be the only decision that makes sense financially. Even if the house is paid off, property and HOA taxes still exist; depending on how large and how expensive the house is, the tax rate will match it. A large, luxurious modern home will be more cost-heavy tax wise than a smaller two bedroom two bathroom home. There is so much to consider when gearing up to sell your home. 

That being said, the decision to sell your home rests firmly in your hands, make sure it’s made at the right time.

“Price is what you pay. Value is what you get.” -Warren Buffett