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Our weekly digest on buying, selling, and design, with expert advice and insider neighborhood knowledge.
What’s the best month to list your house in Greater Boston?
Boston-area trends may contradict national data
Should you wait for warmer weather to list your house when, presumably, more buyers are shopping?
According to the Massachusetts Association of Realtors, the median sales price of a single-family home in Greater Boston in December 2025 was $875,000. In June 2025, however, the median sales price was $1,007,000.
A recent report also underscores the importance of timing your listing properly. According to Zillow’s Best Time to List Analysis of 2025 home sales in the nation’s 35 largest metropolitan areas, sellers who listed their home for sale in the last two weeks of May achieved the highest sale prices. Homes listed in late May sold for 1.7 percent more nationally, or about $6,000 more on a typical home. But while the national sweet spot falls in late May, the financial upside varies widely by city, according to Zillow. In Greater Boston, for example, the gain was even higher — a 3.4 percent premium for homes listed during the last two weeks of May, or an additional $25,300 on a typical home sold.
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“Weather and school schedules tend to drive seasonality for the housing market,” said Kara Ng, Zillow’s senior economist. “In markets where shoppers experience all four seasons, the greatest competition is when the weather warms up enough for open houses, but it’s early enough that buyers can likely close and move before the new school year starts.”
For homeowners looking to sell in Greater Boston, that means late May may be the perfect time to list your home to make sure it’s being seen by the most buyers possible, Ng said.
But some local experts disagree.
“I believe listing in May is a bit late,” said Myrna Rothman, a real estate broker with Douglas Elliman in Boston. “I tell my sellers that the middle to end of March is the best time. If you wait until May, I believe you may lose some potential buyers who have already made their decision.”
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Debby Belt, a senior associate at Hammond Residential Real Estate in Chestnut Hill, agreed. She said by May, many buyers have already purchased, and there are fewer buyers searching for a home.
Indeed, listing in the winter can be beneficial for a seller. While there are likely to be fewer prospective buyers trudging around in the snow, there are also fewer homes on the market, which gives sellers a competitive edge.
According to an analysis of more than 47 million single-family and condominium sales between 2015 and 2024 by real estate data provider ATTOM, listing a property in May generated a seller premium of 9.5 percent above estimated market value, followed closely by February, which brought a seller premium of 9.4 percent — not really much of a difference.
Belt said that she listed several homes in January and February this year, and she’s “really happy she did.” One of them, a three-bedroom home in Newton, was listed in February for $1.6 million and sold in early April for $1.8 million after the seller received 12 offers.
“February was the perfect time to list the house,” she said. “I knew there wasn’t a lot of inventory, so there was less competition and many buyers out there, which gave the seller more leverage. It’s important to be very thoughtful and strategic about timing.”
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