8 Reasons You Should Consider Selling Your House This Spring

There are plenty of reasons to consider selling this spring. As the sun begins to warm the dormant winter soil, trees blossom, tulip bulbs bloom and strategically placed flowerboxes shine. Spring’s unfurling sets a pretty stage for your home to look its best and draw the attention of potential buyers. Take advantage of the warmer weather to elevate the look of your home’s façade, front entry and landscaping.

Just the simple fact that there are now more hours of daylight means more potential buyers can view your home during the day – another great reason for selling this spring! That boosts the number of eyeballs on your property, and ups your odds of landing a desirable offer.

Since a move can be quite disruptive for the youngest members of the family, selling this spring gives you the greatest chance of securing a closing date by the end of the school year. Also, if you’re relocating to a new neighourhood, you’ll have the summer to register at the local school and get familiar with the area before classes start.

If you live in a major Canadian city, bidding wars have become an all-too-familiar scenario of the real estate reality. While they’re a pain for buyers, they can mean big bucks for sellers. Putting your home on the market when demand is highest, between March and June, increases your chances for competitive bidders and multiple offers.

The spring season brings with it the return of warmer days and a whole new crop of homebuyers eager to get their foot in the door. For first-timers or those who have finally decided to move up, spring is when they start looking in earnest  and you could have what they’re looking for. Another tidbit to consider: Millennials (those born between 1982 and 2000) now make up one of the largest groups of recent homeowners, greatly widening the field of potential buyers.

Selling this spring season increases your chances for taking home the biggest cash prize. In fact, houses sold in the first two weeks of May are shown to close higher than any other time of year. One Canadian study showed that houses sold on May 1 in Toronto went for nearly $19,000 more (on average) than on any other day.

Not only do houses sell at a higher price in the spring, they also sell much quicker. It’s a case of supply and demand – as desired houses get snapped up, the supply goes down while the demand (and rush to close a deal before summer starts) rises. Homes listed between May 1 and May 15 can sell weeks faster than homes put on the market at another time.

There is also something physiological that happens in the springtime. Even in areas where the temperatures remain steady throughout the year, people’s attitudes improve in the spring. Making big life decisions such as moving to a new city or selling your beloved (but outgrown) home somehow seem more palatable in the sunshine. Plus, homebuyers want to enjoy their new home in the best months of the year, so are motivated to buy quickly and pay more.