This is probably the most common question any agent hears from sellers. And a genuine concern. The answer feels critically important to most people because they fear having missed a chance to maximize their return on their investment. You can only sell your home once, after all.
The answer is a little more complicated, of course. Markets fluctuate and in the Bay Area, year over year, that might translate to many thousands of dollars. Today may be the top of the market in recent history, but next year may be better. And in truth, even if prices look like they are down a little, the general trend over time is still up, up, up. And no one knows exactly where a pocket of Top is until six months to a year after it has happened. It’s easier to recognize when it’s NOT the best time to sell, than to be guaranteed you are at the top. NONE of us predicted that housing prices would spike in 2020 and 2021, in the early years of Covid, the way they did. But when prices softened, they softened to a point that was still higher than pre-Covid pricing. If you were living in your home and not ready to sell it, then having the use of the home offset any amount of bonus you might have earned at that unique peak. Disrupting of life to move carries a cost, as well.
The real questions that serve you Best as a seller are: What is the best time for ME to sell? How do I maximize my return on my property when I am ready (i.e. how do I catch the top of the market at the time I sell.) The answer to the first question is very personal and involves a lot of factors. The second is by hiring an agent who understands the nuances of this moment in time and helps you achieve your goals. Experience matters, as does choosing an agent whose focus is not on selling the MOST properties, but on getting you top dollar for yours. Personal attention combined with experience matters when it comes to individual results.
I advised several clients to hold off from going on market last fall (election season). They did not have to sell and would have definitely taken a haircut on the proceeds.
