Spring is heralded as the selling season but that’s not the case in Adelaide, with new data revealing homeowners could pocket thousands more just by listing at a different time of year.
Ray White figures going back a decade show May was the best time to sell Adelaide houses, while September and July were the best time for buyers to bag a bargain for houses and units respectively.
The median sale price for a house sold in May was $590,000 compared to $540,000 in September.
For units, the median was $460,000 in May compared to $413,000 in July.
SEE FULL LIST OF SUBURBS BY MONTH TO BUY AND SELL
Peter and Lynette Cooper are selling their Banksia Park property. Picture: Dean Martin.
Ray White chief economist Nerida Conisbee said the figures offered a metropolitan-wide snapshot but the best time to buy and sell differed significantly from suburb-to-suburb.
“We will never know for sure (the best time to buy or sell) but what seems quite consistent is that spring, which is often seen as peak selling season, may not be the best time to sell your home,” she said.
“It’s nice for buyers though because there’s so much out there.”
Ms Conisbee said the perception that spring was the best time to sell often led to a flood of listings, which gave househunters more buying power.
She said market cycles had changed over the past few years and there were many varying factors that determined the best time to buy and sell.
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“If you have a look at last year, the market did slow so the peak was in winter, June last year,” she said.
“Now we are seeing prices re-accelerating, that’s off the back of two rate cuts.”
Real Estate Institute of South Australia chief executive Andrea Heading said tight stock levels meant the usual peaks and toughs no longer existed.
She said aesthetic had a lot to do with spring being perceived as the best time to sell but location was a bigger factor these days.
“People used to always say September is a great time to sell because gardens look better – aesthetics helped a lot,” she said.
“But coastal properties, you see more of them coming to market in the early part of the year.”
Of the almost 500 suburbs Ray White had data for, the spring months were the best time to sell houses in just 123.
On the flip side, spring was the best time to buy in 105 suburbs.
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The selling agent said winter is a great time of year to sell homes with great entertainment areas.
July was the best time to sell a house in 36 Adelaide suburbs, according to the data.
Banksia Park was one of those, which was ideal for Peter and Lynette Cooper who recently listed their home on Waitara Rd.
The couple, who have lived in the three-bedroom house for eight years, have decided to sell now their children have moved out.
“It’s time for the next adventure,” Mr Cooper said.
“We would like to go into the Hills a little bit or, if we don’t see anything we like, we might do a little bit of travelling.”
He said it was a coincidence they listed their home in July but he hoped it was a decision that paid off.
Ray White Tea Tree Gully principal Sam Doman, who was selling the Cooper’s property with Jack Binder, said the entertainment area and its view to the coast made it perfect to sell now.
“If you’ve got a big outdoor entertainment area, I’d say winter is the best time to sell,” he said.
“We choose to sell these types of properties at this time of year because they stand out from the crowd.
“For the whole year that big entertainment area will be enjoyed.”
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