10 Ways to Decrease the Time It Takes
to Sell Your Home

According to one recent estimate from HomeLight, an American home stays on the market for an average of 47 days, as of April 2024. This figure is slightly up from where it was in 2023, when the average time spent on the market was closer to 37. 

Depending on your current personal and financial situation, this may or may not seem like a lot of time. Regardless, if you are currently in the process of selling your home, you are probably looking for a few strategies you can use to quickly get the home off of your hands. 

Luckily, there are quite a few things that you can do (some of which are free) to help decrease the time it takes to sell your home. If you are hoping to speed up your current timeline, be sure to keep these ten useful tips in mind. 

  1. Hire a Real Estate Agent

Some people might be tempted to avoid hiring a real estate agent due to the fact it could, potentially, save them a few thousand dollars. However, in addition to providing expertise and guidance in the home buying process—something that most people need—hiring a real estate agent will usually significantly reduce how long it takes to sell your home. In fact, homes sold by the owner typically take more than twice as long to sell as those sold with an agent. 

 

  1. Take Advantage of Social Media

People use social media platforms for a lot of different things, including for finding potential homes to buy or sell. There are many different Facebook groups, Instagram pages, and other digital hotspots that make it easy to connect with potential buyers and also showcase the best features of your home. 

3. Talk to Your Network

Your friends know someone who is currently looking to sell their home—they know you. But it is also likely that they know somebody who is currently looking to buy. While you don’t need to constantly be advertising to your friends, family, and coworkers, making it known that you are in the process of selling might help you discover some interested buyers. 

 

4. Invest in a Quality Photographer

In an era where more than 90 percent of potential homebuyers look online before buying, investing in quality photography is an absolute must. Homes that have at least 20 high-quality photos will sell in about half the time of those that do not. Additionally, be sure to take your photos during a sunny day in the spring or summer, especially if you have a nice yard. 

5. Change the Listing Photo

Many people who are in the process of buying a home will check listing sites and social media on a daily basis. This means that they’ve probably already taken a look at your home and may or may not be interested. However, if you update the listing photo (and your home still meets their search criteria), you might be able to grab their attention once again, causing them to give your home a second look.

6. Post Across Multiple Listing Sites

The best way to catch a lot of fish (potential homebuyers) is to have a lot of lines in the water. In the real estate market, this means building out your digital footprint as much as you can. There are many home listing sites available, including Zillow, Redfin, Xome, and more—we recommend creating an active profile on all of them.  

7. Stage Your Home

We know you love your own stuff—but that doesn’t mean everybody does. Homes that are overly personal and filled to the brim with your favorite things will tend to feel cluttered or alienating. This makes it harder for people to envision themselves living there. Be sure to work with a professional home stager and present your home in a more neutral way. 

8. Sell in the Summer

Though this might not always be something you can control, homes that are listed around the beginning of summer (May through July) will typically stay on the market for the shortest amount of time. They will also usually sell at a slightly higher price point, especially if you live in a good school district. 

9. Clean Your House Often

One of the quickest ways to turn someone away from your home is if it’s dirty. If you are doing multiple open houses a week, you might be tempted to skip a cleaning or two but you will lose a lot of interest in the process. 

10. Be Flexible with Negotiations

During the closing process, buyers will usually create a list of things they want to be fixed in the prospective home—and sellers will usually agree to at least some of these requests. If you are willing to be more flexible with negotiations (and say yes to more of their requests), then you should be able to close the deal in considerably less time. 

Conclusion

By keeping each of these strategies in mind, you can significantly decrease the time it takes to sell your home. 


Selling your home and looking to buy the next one? Our team of Mortgage Experts can help!