The Beginning of Listing Season is Officially Upon Us

Sellers are eager to get listing season started a bit earlier this year as Manhattan inventory has increased for the first time since October.?Listing early can be a blessing and a curse as there are two sides to every coin. Yes, sellers who list early are competing against less inventory than they would be in two or three months from now, hence having more attention on their apartments than they otherwise would; but there is also a reason a majority of new listings come online in the spring, it is when there is the highest demand. Not too many people want to look in the freezing cold temperatures of January and February, and there is less inventory for them to choose from.

Not only are there more buyers in the spring, but usually they are more ready to close than those looking in January. Unless your apartment is perfectly positioned, buyers are always going to wonder in the back of their heads if something better might become available as more listings come on the market. Few buyers, even experienced ones, want to only look at a few apartments before making such a major decision, and the majority of buyers coming to your listing in January are just starting their search process.?

And let’s face it- it is almost impossible in NYC to have a perfectly positioned apartment as no matter your price point, there is always a give and take in the real estate market here. You can spend $10M and still have secondary bedrooms facing a brick wall and no central air conditioning.

If you do want to list early, I find the last week in February and the first week of March to be ideal times to come to market as you get a great mix of less inventory and a strong surge of buyers You also are more inclined to get someone who has been looking in January and February and is starting to grow weary of the process and understands what value they can get for their price point.