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You can sell a house in a few days — if you don’t mind selling far below market value. Alternatively, some sellers spend years waiting for the perfect offer and buyer.
How long it takes to sell a house depends on the housing market, the property, and the seller’s urgency and flexibility. Bear in mind that all housing markets are local: one city could experience a red-hot seller’s market while another just a few hours away could have a soft buyer’s market.
As you start to get a sense for how long it might take you to sell your own house or investment property, keep the following factors in mind.
As of June 2024, the average number of days that a property sits on the market is 44 days according to the Federal Reserve, based on data from Realtor.com.
Realtor.com calculates that number as days “from list date to closing, pending, or off-market date depending on data availability.” For the average property, that means days actively listed for sale before the seller accepts an offer (not days to closing).
Over the last eight years, the average days on market has fluctuated between 30 on the low end to 88 on the high side. Most often, it has hovered between 40-70 days.
Again, the nationwide average may look little like your own local market. Real estate is inherently local and subject to local market forces.
Once a residential property goes under contract to a homebuyer, it typically takes at least three to four weeks to reach the settlement table. Investment properties sold to other investors often close faster.
How long does it take to sell a house today, in a perfectly average real estate market? From list date to closing, it would theoretically take around 75 days. But that doesn’t mean your own property would take that long — many factors impact how long it takes to sell a home.
Common factors affecting how long it takes to sell a house include location, condition of the property, pricing, and current market conditions.
You’ve heard real estate agents drone on about location, location, location. So you get it: the more desirable the location, the greater the demand for the property, and therefore the greater the market value.
In general, that impacts pricing more than the time it takes to sell a home. Sellers can command a higher price for properties in desirable locations — and they compete with similar properties in the same area. Properties a mile away in a less desirable location might cost half as much, but they compete for different buyers. In either case, you could sell the property faster by knocking 5-10% off the sales price.
That said, some locations have little overall demand. Imagine an extreme example of a dying post-industrial town with a shrinking population. Sellers can cut the price and still not attract buyers, because so few people actually want to buy there.
At the start of my career in real estate investing, I worked for a professional investor buying pre-foreclosure properties from distressed sellers. Many of them had to sell within a week or two, or lose their home to foreclosure.
For the right price, the investor could close on a home within three days. It took a herculean effort, but again, for the right price it was worth it.
You could sell your home in a few days if you didn’t mind selling far below market value. Or you could list your home above market value and not budge for months or even years, waiting for the perfect buyer to come along.
You’ve heard terms like “buyer’s market” and “seller’s market” thrown around. They refer to the balance of supply versus demand.
Markets with high local housing supply and muted demand make for buyer’s markets. Buyers have plenty of options of available homes for sale. And vice versa: local housing markets with high demand among buyers but little inventory from sellers makes for a seller’s market.
You can measure this balance of supply and demand by looking at the number of months’ supply of housing inventory. In the industry, analysts calculate this number by dividing the total number of homes for sale by the number of homes that sold last month. A market with 1,500 homes for sale and 300 homes sold last month has an inventory of five months’ supply of inventory.
As a general rule, analysts consider six months of inventory as a neutral or balanced market, plus or minus one month’s inventory. Analysts often consider markets with seven or more months’ worth of inventory as buyer’s markets, and five or fewer months’ of inventory as seller’s markets.
As intuitive as it is, it’s still worth mentioning: the condition of the property affects the demand for it, and therefore its pricing and how long it can take to sell.
A new or recently renovated home can command top dollar. Buyers won’t pay as much for homes with deferred maintenance.
Improving curb appeal helps, as do simple cosmetic improvements such as repainting where needed. But the worse the condition of the property, the fewer buyers are willing to take on the headaches of improving it.
As an extreme example, few buyers have the skill, patience, and desire to take on a property that needs a total gut renovation. It will likely take longer to sell that property, because you’re marketing to a small pool of buyers.
Markets don’t sit still — they constantly shift and evolve.
That starts with population growth and economic growth. Cities with strong local economies attract transplants to move there, fueling demand for housing. Likewise, cities with floundering economies often see population loss and drop in demand for housing.
The nationwide economy also plays a role. A booming national economy may cause higher demand in expensive housing markets. Or a recession might cause transplants to look at more affordable housing markets. That impacts the average days on market for homes listed in these cities.
Mortgage interest rates also impact supply and demand. Higher interest rates drive up monthly payments for would-be buyers, making the same purchase price more expensive on a monthly basis. That typically dampens demand, and sellers sometimes have to lower their prices to find buyers willing and able to purchase.
Some sellers don’t budge on pricing, and it takes them longer to find a buyer.
The easiest lever to pull in order to sell your house faster is pricing. Offer the property for sale below market value, and you can typically expect a flood of offers.
Of course, not every seller wants to take a haircut on price.
Start by sitting down with a few local Realtors to brainstorm ideas on how to sell your house quickly without pricing low. Look up the top two or three local real estate agents in your neighborhood and submarket. They can talk you through the current market conditions at the hyper-local level, and how your house compares to other inventory for sale.
They may recommend staging, whether virtual or physical. Or they may have creative marketing ideas to reach an extremely specific buyer demographic.
Alternatively, they may recommend a few targeted home improvements, to appeal to a broader pool of buyers.
As part of that conversation, discuss financing. An excellent Realtor should have relationships with fast, effective mortgage lenders. You can also explore creative financing options like seller financing (including a seller-held second mortgage), installment contracts, lease-option agreements, and more. These work particularly well for investors selling homes.
Finally, prepare yourself to adapt as needed. You may attract a dozen offers within a few days of listing your property — or you may get none. Have an ongoing dialogue with your real estate agent about how to attract more showings and offers if you don’t see the demand you expected.
Local expertise matters. Lean on an expert in your exact real estate submarket.
Some as-is properties get snatched up instantly, with multiple offers on the day they’re listed for sale. Others go for months with no offers.
Again, it depends on the local market, your pricing, and of course the as-is condition of your particular property. “As-is” means something different for a slightly outdated home than a crumbling wreck on the verge of being condemned.
In some cases, it makes financial sense to make a minor update or two. Spending a few hundred dollars and a weekend to paint the home could add many thousands of dollars to the purchase price. Or it may not help at all, depending on your house and real estate market.
Consider it one more reason to consult a Realtor who knows your submarket inside and out.
A livable but cosmetically outdated home can sell just as quickly as a freshly renovated one, albeit at a lower price. Homes with mechanical or structural problems take longer to sell, because you’re marketing to a smaller pool of buyers. Depending on the repairs needed, you might find yourself selling to investors instead of homebuyers. They can often close quickly, but they expect a discount.
How long does it take to sell a house?
It depends, of course. On all of the factors listed above, and more.
While the nationwide average time on market offers some context for the country at large, drill down to your local market to find the local average for days on market. Look up the local housing inventory to get a sense for whether it’s a buyer’s or seller’s market.
Speak with at least one or two of the best real estate agents in your submarket. They’ll not only have the pulse of the local market, but they can provide expert advice for how to market and sell your property quickly.
If a fast closing matters to you, consider selling to an investor such as Max Properties. They can close quickly, usually with a cash purchase, with no repairs needed on your end.
Only you know your timeline and priorities. Explore all your options and decide which one fits them best.
Just fill out the form below to get started on your FREE, no-obligation cash offer today.
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8410 Kennedy Avenue, Highland, IN, 46322
