Thinking of selling or buying in 2025?

Selling

If you are thinking of selling in 2025, now is the time to start getting your home market ready. First impressions matter in this market and to get the most amount of money your home needs to look its best. The first thing to do, is schedule a walk thru with a professional agent, preferably a West Seattle Realty agent;), and come up with a house plan. Each home is unique and there is no one size fits all in preparing a home for market. We typically discuss necessary repairs, cosmetic enhancements and potential home renovation. West Seattle Realty is able to discuss where spending a dollar will make a dollar (and maybe sell quicker) or where a dollar can make 5 dollars. Successful home sellers know that not doing the required pre-market work can cost them time and money.

Starting as soon as possible on this helps better manage projects and budgets. You are able to shop for best prices, make sure your material is in stock, and not deal with last minute. The more time you have the smoother it can go.

Timing

It’s no secret that spring is one of the best times to put your house on the market.  It is a time of year that can capitalize on when there is the most buyers in the marketplace and get the most amount of money. You can see in the below graph (West Seattle Residential last 3 years) that spring markets typically offer market peaks for the year.

It is typically the time of year where there is more demand and less inventory. You can see in the below graph List Price-Sales Price Ratios are higher in Spring markets. Meaning, we see more multiple offers and escalators for properties during these time.

The homes that received these multiple offers are homes typically the homes that did the pre-market work and attracted the biggest pool of buyers.

Condition

If you want to list next spring (or anytime next year) it is never too early to start market-ready.

To get the most money, in the least amount of time and hassle, it’s important to get its home to look its best.  That can include minor repairs, cosmetic updates like paintings and flooring or something more substantial like renovating a kitchen or bath.  Kitchen and baths are main drivers for todays buyers.  

Repairs -

There will be small or medium repairs that are recommended. These are usually things you’ve been “meaning to take care of” for a long time. They are things that distract from the charm and livability of your home. We want a buyer to feel comfortable and concentrate on how much they love your home, not on that unsightly torn vinyl or unpainted wall. These are usually low cost things you can do yourself or hire a handyman to help with.

Exterior paint and deck repair for future listing

Remodeling -

In some cases a seller is better off making more costly improvements to increase the value or salability of their home. In all cases we will weigh carefully the cost vs benefit of any home improvement you make. We will never recommend you do anything that won’t get you more money or make it more likely that you get a buyer for your home. 

Kitchen remodel for one of WSR listings

No matter what level of preparation is needed you will have our full support. We have a long list of trusted vendors who do good quality work for reasonable prices. If you need a certain type of contractor or service provider chances are we know one. We can even manage the logistics of the process if you need my help. 

Plan now! By not waiting until the last minute you can help reduce stress.  You can better schedule contractors or work items to your schedule (vs. last minute and all at the same time) and work around weather constraints. 

Buying

If you are a buyer and made it this far, you might be thinking why would I look in spring when prices and competition are highest? I urge you to rethink that. It’s also the time when there is the most new inventory and homes, that strategically listed, come out. The below graph charts out when ‘new’ listings come out. You likely will have a better chance to find a home that checks most (if not all) of the boxes. Its the time of year when you have the most ‘new choices’.

If you can think of it as musical chairs, it’s the time of year when there are the most chairs to circle and find a place to sit. There are many other benefits of buying earlier in the year in that you secured the home, if work or school considerations are at play.

Having the most inventory doesn’t always mean having the best choices.  Here is looking at inventory levels over the past 3 years.  These homes typically sit on the market for a variety of reasons.  

You can also look at this info and decide to look later in the year. Just know, there are less chairs to circle and maybe several other buyers rounding the chair with you.

Either way, we would be happy to discuss seasonal home buying plans. We can help set reasonable expectations and get successful results.