May has been proven to be the best time to list a home for sale in Philly. But buyers may want to wait a little longer to find a home if they want the best bang for their buck.
The best time to buy in the Philadelphia metro region is late summer, around August and September, according to Zillow’s latest report. The real estate website used its own listing and pricing data from 2016 for its analysis.
To be clear, spring is when housing stock inventory in Philly is at its highest. But while that means there’s more to go around for buyers, so to speak, it’s also the time of year when buyers experience the most competition. Homes also sell really quickly and at a premium, too.
That’s why buyers should wait until late summer to put in an offer on a home. It’s around this time that sellers may start to panic because their homes still haven’t sold, the researchers wrote. That’s when home price tags start to go to the chopping block.
Consider the stats: In April and May 2016, there were 37,000 to 38,000 homes for sale. Of these homes, 15.8 to 16.7 percent sold above the asking price.
Come August and September though? There was still 36,000 to 37,000 homes for sale, but only 13 percent sold above asking. In addition, these two months experienced the biggest percentage of pricechops to listing prices, with 21 percent of active listings receiving price reductions in September.
These findings were on par with all of the other metros analyzed in the report. The researchers write, “There’s little reason to believe the seasonal patterns observed in 2016 will be significantly different in 2017, meaning it’s highly likely good deals will exist in late summer for patient buyers.”
- Preaching Patience: What's the Best Time of Year for Home Buyers? [Zillow]
- Why May is the best time to sell in Philly [Curbed Philly]
- 5 Philly homes that were pending sale in less than a week [Curbed Philly]
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