Anyone looking to sell their home might have a harsh reality check: It’s not the seller’s market it was after the pandemic.

The number of property listings continue to hit post-pandemic highs, and median prices are now dipping in many parts of the country. In fact, U.S. homes are sitting on the market even longer than they did before the COVID buying boom of 2020 and 2021. In August, the typical home spent 60 days on the market — more than any August since 2017, according to new Realtor.com data.

So what? Sellers have to accept that the eye-popping offers of the pandemic era are over. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t opportunities for homeowners who are strategic, realistic, and flexible.

Here are some options if you’re looking to move:

•  Embrace autumn. While there aren’t as many buyers in the fall as in spring and summer, your listing has a better chance of standing out in the off season. And buyers can be motivated to close before winter hits — especially with 30-year mortgage rates hitting a 10-month low of 6.5%.

•  Sweeten the deal. Yes, mortgage rates are lower than they’ve been all year. But they’re still twice what they were in 2021 — making buying a home a lot less affordable for many Americans. Offering prospective buyers’ an incentive, like covering closing costs or paying for home repairs, could get them over the hump.

•  Stay put. If you’re not getting the offer you want, can you stay in your current home until the market changes? Delistings surged 57% in the year through July, outpacing the overall growth in listings, according to the Realtor.com data. If that continues, and buyers have fewer and fewer choices, they might lose their newfound leverage.

•  Think locally: Don’t be discouraged by the national trends, which mask huge regional and city-by-city variations. The inventory of homes for sale has recovered a lot faster in the West and South than the Northeast and Midwest, for instance.

•  Remember everything is relative: It’s no longer a seller’s market, but it’s not a classic buyer’s market either. Just because asking for too much can backfire doesn’t mean you won’t make a solid profit on your investment. Nationally, the median list price in August was $430,000 – still 36% higher than in 2019, before the pandemic triggered the buying boom, according to the Realtor.com data.

Related Reading

Homebuyer Shortage Forces Many Sellers to Lower Prices, Walk Away as Slump Drags On (ABC News)

Should I Sell My House Now? (Redfin)

What’s a Buyer’s Market vs. a Seller’s Market? (Laughlin Tanner Group)

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