Why March is the “sweet spot” for Home Sellers

 Think of the market like a funnel. Active listings are the supply (how many homes buyers can choose from). Pending listings are demand in action (buyers actually pulling the trigger and putting homes under contract). When pendings are high and actives are still relatively low, sellers get the best version of the market: more urgency, less competition, and cleaner negotiations.

That’s exactly what shows up in March. In your dataset, March posts 5,584 pendings against 15,392 actives, meaning pendings are roughly 36% of the active pool, the strongest “demand vs supply” balance of the year. Translation: buyers are out in force, but inventory hasn’t fully swollen yet. By the time you get into the warmer months, inventory balloons while pendings flatten or fade. Example: June has 21,580 actives but only 4,760 pendings (about 22%). More choice for buyers usually means slower decisions, more buyer leverage, and more price-chopping across the neighborhood.

March isn’t alone, it’s the peak of a short early-spring window. February (4,029 pendings vs 14,028 actives) and April (5,068 vs 17,835) are also strong, with a similar “tight gap” feel compared to late spring and summer. Even January has a relatively tight spread (lower inventory at 13,114 actives), but demand is lighter, so it’s not as consistently “multiple-offer” friendly as March.

Bottom line: if your goal is to get under contract quickly and confidently, aim to hit the market in late February or early March. That usually means photos, prep, and positioning get handled in January and early February, so you’re not racing the spring inventory wave that hits in May, June, and July.

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