New research by eMoov has revealed the best time of year to list your property to get the highest price possible across the coming school year.
According to the online estate agent, the best time of year to complete on your sale is the Easter holidays, with the average price paid reaching £398,041.
The spring term leading up to Easter is the second highest at £324,632, with the spring half term (£323,052), the autumn half term (£303,003) and Christmas holidays (£300,367) also providing the best windows for a higher paid price.
eMoov used price paid data from the Land Registry across each holiday and term time to see when it is best to list and take advantage of the fluctuating price bands to complete on your house sale throughout the year.
With the school term starting up again it can be a manic time for many with lots to sort out, so a property sale can often take a back seat – evident with the first autumn term seeing the lowest price paid for property throughout the year (£271,028).
Although a much higher number of properties are sold during the longer-term times, the average sold price in school terms is £296,128, £12,000 less than holiday sold prices (£308,150).
If you are looking to sell before the end of 2017, eMoov recommends you list your property now to get the best chance of achieving the highest possible price.
It takes around six weeks to complete and around two months to sell a property.
So while it may seem like a long way off for those heading back to school, the autumn half term and a 12% higher sold price than the current term time itself is just seven weeks away.
Therefore, if you’re sitting on the house selling fence, now is your best opportunity to achieve a better sold price either during the half term break or Christmas holidays, without holding out until Spring 2018.
Russell Quirk, founder & CEO of eMoov.co.uk, said: “As we wave goodbye to summer and finally see the kids return to school many will pause for a breath and a well-deserved cup of tea. However, for those of us with a property sale forthcoming, our attention will soon be drawn to when to sell with an eye on completing before Christmas.
“Whilst the Christmas break offers an opportunity to get a sale over the line, and for a marginally higher sold price, when combined with the additional stress of the festive period it can be a tough ask.
“As this research shows, the best window to aim for, albeit a smaller one, is the autumn half term. Of course, you can never say for sure how long a sale will take as each is individual, but as a good rule of thumb, getting the preparation of floor plans and photos out of the way now, puts you in a very good position once the market picks up mid-term and continues to do so right up until Christmas.”
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