- Dax NollenbergerThinking About Selling This Year? Here’s How to Decide
At the start of a new year, many homeowners quietly revisit the idea of selling. Not because they are certain they will, but because something has changed. Life, finances, family, or simply the feeling that it may be time.
The hardest part is not deciding whether to sell. It is deciding when.
What We Know and What We Don’t
No one can say with certainty what the market will look like six or twelve months from now. What we do know is that 2025 brought a noticeable increase in housing supply, much of it driven by listings that had been deferred during the previous two years of historically low inventory.
Over the past year, supply increased as many homeowners who had been waiting finally moved forward. Not because conditions suddenly became perfect, but because life changes do not pause for market cycles. Job moves, family needs, downsizing, and other transitions reached a point where waiting no longer made sense. When enough of those decisions happen at once, supply naturally increases and market dynamics shift in certain segments.
What happens next is less predictable. Rates, buyer demand, and broader economic forces all play a role. Anyone claiming certainty is oversimplifying a complex system.
Timing Is Personal, Not Just Market Based
While market conditions matter, they are only part of the equation. The right time to sell is often driven more by life than by headlines.
From a historical perspective, it is also worth noting that home prices remain near all time highs. Even outside of the extraordinary conditions of the COVID era, sales prices today are meaningfully stronger than they were just a few years ago. The market may feel calmer, but outcomes are still very favorable for well positioned homes.
Positioning Is What Creates Results
This is where strategy matters most. In any market, but especially in one with more supply, positioning determines outcome.
Positioning is not just pricing. It is understanding how buyers are currently behaving, how your home compares to available alternatives, and what will make it stand out for the right reasons. It includes preparation guidance, clear disclosures, marketing strategy, and a launch plan designed for today’s conditions, not yesterday’s.
This is where experience and local knowledge make a real difference. My role is to help you position your home so it attracts the right buyers, creates confidence, and maximizes leverage, regardless of broader market noise.
That does not always mean doing more. Often it means doing the right things and skipping the rest.
Focus on What You Can Control
You cannot control interest rates or future inventory. You can control preparation, pricing, and presentation. You can control how your home enters the market and how clearly buyers understand its value.
Today, sellers also have access to tools that support smart positioning when it makes sense. Options like Sereno Ascend allow some sellers to address key items strategically, so decisions are driven by outcomes rather than short term constraints.
The strategy always comes first. The tools simply support it.
Clarity Leads to Strong Outcomes
Selling does not have to start with a commitment. It can start with understanding your home’s position in today’s market and what an intelligent strategy would look like.
If you are considering selling this year and want to talk through how your home could be positioned for the strongest possible outcome, I am always happy to start with a conversation.
Dax Nollenberger
📩 dax@sereno.com
📞 831-227-5847
