Map: Here's the best month to list your home based on where you live

A new Zillow analysis shows that listing your home at a certain time of year may boost your sale price, but it largely depends on where you live – and the data comes with a caveat. 

Analysts warn that this year’s home sales may not follow last year’s trends. Low inventory and volatile mortgage rates continue to create uncertainty in the housing market. 

Townhouse for sale sign, Corcoran Realty, in driveway of row houses, Forest Hills, Queens, New York. (Photo by: Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

"In the past few years, mortgage rate fluctuations upended the traditional spring home shopping season," Orphe Divounguy, a senior economist at Zillow, said in a prepared statement. "Buyers who are on the edge of qualifying for a loan jump in and out of the market depending on what's happening with rates. When rates fall, more buyers rush in, putting upward pressure on prices, which could happen at any time of year. " 

When is the best time to list your home? 

What they're saying:

On average, homes listed in the second half of May sold for 1.6% more than other times of year, according to a Zillow analysis of 2024 home sales. 

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Search activity typically peaks before Memorial Day, "as shoppers get serious about house hunting before their summer vacation and the new school year in the fall," Zillow says. 

But spring may not be the best time for all sellers, depending on where they live, and some metros may see a much bigger jump than others during peak buying time. 

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"The reality is that most sellers don't have the luxury of being able to wait for the right week and the right month to sell. Timing aside, sellers can still take advantage of other seller strategies to reach the most potential buyers," Zillow says.