Do you need to know how long it takes to sell a home so that you can plan life and finances accordingly?
There are a number of factors that impact how long it will take for you to sell your house. If you find yourself under a time constraint, let’s save you some time right now with a better option. Sell it directly to a reputable cash home buyer. This will result in finalizing closing documents within days vs. weeks or months.
Selling your house the traditional way on the MLS (or even via For Sale By Owner-FSBO) both take extra time. However, let’s dive into the details so you can see what is typically involved.
How Long Does It Take to Sell a House?
On average, it takes 50-75 days to sell a house in the United States, consisting of 20-30 days on the market and a 30-45 closing period. Of course, the time it takes to sell your house varies based on a number of different factors such as its condition.
In “normal” market conditions and with homes in average condition, it may take closer to 90-120 days.
During this time, the owner must pay to maintain the house. You will also continue to make mortgage payments.
The faster you sell your home, the more money you can save, especially if you already have a new home.
Variables That Impact How Long It Takes to Sell a House
When you know what factors can impact how long it takes to sell a house, you can better estimate how long to expect the sale of your house to take. We will cover some elements often discussed by the National Association’s literature.
Here are some of the variables that impact how long it takes to sell a house.
Market Time in Home Selling
Market conditions will always be the biggest factor in selling a home. There are buyer’s markets, seller’s markets, and “normal” markets that also fall in between.
A favorable real estate market for a seller makes it much easier to sell a house fast. This means there is low inventory or a fancy way of saying there are fewer homes to choose from for buyers. This will increase demand for your house, and with higher demand, it can bring in more prospective buyers resulting in multiple offers.
When it’s a buyers market, there are typically more homes available than there are buyers. This gives the prospective buyer more options, which in turn drives selling prices down and takes longer for you to sell the house.
In a buyer’s market, homebuyers want a deal. If a seller puts their house on the market at too high of an asking price, it can deter people from making an offer. It can also lead to the house reducing in price to the point that’s it sold under market value.
So the first step in estimating how much time it will take to sell a house is identifying which market cycle you’re presently in.
Location, Location, and Neighborhood
Houses in desirable communities sell more quickly than houses in undesirable neighborhoods. Think about it; do you want to live in a sketchy area if you have the choice? Most people feel the same way.
Things that determine a neighborhood’s desirability include:
- School district
- Crime index & safety
- Walkability
- Amenities
- Access to major roads
People also want access to safety resources, business, shopping, and recreation, making areas near large cities more expensive than places in remote locations far away from shopping and public transportation. That said, with more people working remotely the location of real estate has more flexibility than it previously did. This is driving new trends, such as something called the rural boom.
Even in desirable locations, the condition of the home matters immensely. Most home buyers do not want to buy a house that will require work before they move in. Instead, they expect the seller to pay for these repairs before selling. This might be due to financial constraints, but it’s also a matter of convenience. If they are selling a home to move into a new one, where will they live while repairs are being made?
It’s for this reason that condition is perhaps the most important factor in determining how much time it will take to sell your house. This is the #1 reason people call us, because they have heard that we will purchase their house fast regardless of the condition. Let’s continue the discussion of just how important the condition of your home is in the sales process.
Condition of the House
When a home looks nice, people will be more likely to put an offer on it regardless of the market cycle. They can even look past location.
Houses in poor condition won’t sell quickly unless you are working with a company that specifically looks to buy homes in poor condition for good prices.
It will take a substantial amount of time to fix a house in poor condition to make it suitable for a quick sale.
Once the house is in ready-to-sell condition, you will need to stage the home and promote it by placing ads in local real estate resources and hosting an open house. What’s more, Realtor’s have a very hard time getting past cosmetic issues before listing the house. They will often recommend improvements before they agree to list the home on the market. Selling a house that needs work definitely calls for special considerations.
Looking to sell a house with tenants? Read more here.
Real Estate Agent
The estate agent you work with will play a huge role in how quickly your house sells.
Even the most experienced real estate agent will take time to evaluate the best offer, communicate with the potential buyer, manage the home inspection process, and negotiate contingencies. An inexperienced real estate agent can significantly slow down the process and even deter a buyer. This is especially true when similar homes are available.
To avoid going through an agent and paying a real estate commission, some people opt to sell their home For Sale By Owner (FSBO). FSBO homes only sell more quickly, though, if the owner works hard and makes time for the process. You still have to get the house on the MLS so prospective buyers see it. It’s also important you understand how to navigate important details such as earnest money and closing documents.
Even if you receive an acceptable offer on the first day on the market, most buyers will use a mortgage lender. This means they will need to obtain an appraisal, and it will often take 30 days to close this process.
Benefits to Selling a Home Quickly
Why sell a home quickly instead of taking your time? Here are just some of the advantages of selling a home quickly.
Save Money
Probably the best reason to sell a home quickly is to save money.
You won’t need to pay for the maintenance of the property, the utility bills, property taxes, insurance, or the mortgage after you sell it.
Many sellers want to sell a house quickly if they already have another home they’re obtaining a mortgage for, but often need the proceeds as a contingency to close on it.
Furthermore, houses tend to go down in price after they’ve been on the market for a significant amount of time.
Move On With Your Life
People move for work or relocation reasons, but also for a fresh start. The stress associated with the sale can also damper the experience of creating the new living situation you desire.
Once you sell your old home, you can move forward with the next stage of life in your new home. You will have the time and the right mindset to make your new house a home.
Ways to Sell a Home More Quickly
If you happen to be a motivated seller, you probably want to learn how to sell your house as quickly as possible.
Use these tips to sell your home as quickly as possible.
Skip the Realtor
You don’t legally need a realtor to sell your home. In fact, many Little Rock homeowners choose to sell their house without a real estate agent.
Traditionally, the Realtor would facilitate the sale with the home buyer, but you’ll also have to pay commission to the realtor. The average commission to the realtor in many cases of 6% or more. This means for a $100,000 home you will be paying $6,000!
Save money and time by selling through a real estate investor instead of a real estate agent or selling the house FSBO.
Sell As-Is to Cash Buyers
You may also consider selling the house as is, and forgoing repairs.
Repairs take a long time and cost money that some people don’t have available. Avoid time and money spent fixing your home by selling it “as-is.”
Selling a home as-is means that you are selling the house in its current condition to someone who plans to make the repairs. You don’t need to make improvements related to the home’s curb appeal or pay for expensive repairs.
Many homeowners do not know ethical contractors to call to make these needed repairs. Unfortunately, this can lead to homeowners being taken advantage of financially, with repairs sometimes remaining incomplete in the end. We have witnessed this first-hand when meeting with homeowners who wish to sell their home that has only been partially completed, and no money left to make the home ready for sale.
There are other advantages as well. When selling a home as-is, you won’t have a responsibility to disclose all necessary repairs to the buyer. However, this can vary by state.
Learn more about how to sell your home as-is.
Search For a Cash Buyer
When you accept a cash offer, you don’t need to spend time waiting for the buyer’s appraisal or mortgage to get approved. You can also skip the home inspection step.
The problem is that most buyers don’t have the resources to buy a home in cash. You will benefit from selling to a real estate investor, but make sure they are reputable and have the ability to actually close.
Gary Buys Houses will give you a cash offer that will often take only days, and won’t sit in escrow for 30-45 days.
Reduce Time to Sell Your Little Rock House: Call Gary Buys Houses
Gary developed his love for real estate in Little Rock at a young age. Since he started buying homes in 2010, he and his family have closed on almost 100 homes (so far) and don’t plan on stopping any time soon.
They do it for the love of the industry, but also as a way to help people and offer solutions that eliminate stress and fear that come along with house selling with the knowledge they’ve gained over the years.
Find an interested buyer fast. Call Gary today to learn more about the hassle-free process and how you can get money for your house in as little as a week, saving money on the real estate commission, staging costs, repairs, and closing costs.
