Record Number of Homeowners Believe Good Time to Sell

A record high of 77 percent of Americans believe it is a good time to sell a house, according to the National Association of Realtors® third quarter 2018 Housing Opportunities and Market Experience survey. As far as buying a home, 63 percent believe it is a good time to buy. Additionally, an almost record 60 percent believe the economy is improving. This is up from 58 percent in the previous quarter and up from 53 percent in the third quarter of last year.

The breakdown for optimism on selling a home was 50 percent strongly believing it is a good time to sell, up four percent from the second quarter, and 27 percent moderately believing it is a good time to sell, compared to 29 percent in the second quarter. Those in the West came in the highest for overall optimism to sell, at 85 percent, and homeowners came in at 82 percent overall. Twenty-two percent believe it is not a good time to sell, down seven percent from the second quarter.

Seventy percent say that home prices have risen in the last 12 months in their area, and 53 percent believe they will continue to increase in the next six months.

Rising home prices are contributing to the belief it is a good time to sell, according to NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “Though the vast majority of consumers believe home prices will continue to increase or hold steady, they understand the days of easy, fast gains could be coming to an end. Therefore, more are indicating that it is a good time to sell, which is a healthy shift in the market.”

Highly rated schools were important to over two-thirds of those surveyed. Twenty five percent said proximity to friends and family was most important, and 24 percent said proximity to job and a short commute was most important.

NAR President Elizabeth Mendenhall said, “When you buy a home, you do not just buy the house; you buy a community – neighbors, parks, stores and schools. Realtors® understand the unique qualities of the neighborhoods in their area and can help individual families find and purchase the right home in the right neighborhood.”