Most sellers pick a list date around their own calendar. When the renovation's done, when the kids are out of school, when they finally get around to it. The data says that date is doing more work than they think.
I pulled every Northeast Florida home sale realMLS has on record back to 2001. That's 594,356 listings across Duval, St. Johns, Clay, Nassau, Putnam, Baker, and Bradford. Then I sorted them by the month the home was listed and looked at how long each one took to go under contract.
The gap is bigger than I expected. A home listed in April goes under contract in a median of 34 days. A home listed in November takes 49 days. That's 15 extra days, or about 44% longer, for the same house, depending only on when it hit the market.
Spring is the sweet spot. March, April, and May all land in the low-to-mid 30s. From there it climbs all summer and peaks in the fall. September, October, and November are the three slowest months to list, every one of them over 40 days. December is nearly as bad.
This isn't a fluke of one hot year
My first thought was that some boom year was dragging the numbers around. It isn't. November has been the single slowest month to list in seven of the last twelve years. The spring advantage shows up in the 2008 crash, in the 2021 frenzy, and in the slower market we're in now. Different price levels, different mortgage rates, same seasonal shape every time.
Price follows the same curve, just gentler. Homes listed in spring close at about 97.5% of their original asking price. Homes listed in the fall come in closer to 96.5%. That's roughly a point, so on a $400,000 home it's about $4,000. Real, but small next to the time gap. The thing the calendar really moves is how long you sit.
Why the month matters this much
It comes down to how many buyers are actually out looking. Buyer traffic in Northeast Florida builds through spring and thins out over the holidays. List in April and your home meets the deepest pool of the year, so it finds its buyer fast. List in November and the same home ages straight into the slowest stretch of the calendar, when fewer people are shopping and the ones who are feel no urgency.
A lot of people assume Florida runs on snowbird season, that winter is when the buyers show up. The closing data says otherwise. The buyers who actually move this market close in spring, which means they are writing offers in February, March, and April.
What it means for you
If you're selling and you have any flexibility on timing, list in spring. February through May is the window. If you have to sell in the fall, price it right on day one, because a November listing that starts high is the one still sitting in January after two cuts.
If you're buying, do the opposite. Shop in the fall and early winter. The homes listed then take the longest to sell, which means more of them are cutting price and more sellers are willing to deal. You will face less competition in October than you will in April.
If you're an agent, this is a listing-appointment conversation. A seller coming to market in November needs to hear their home may take seven weeks, not the five they watched a neighbor get in spring. Setting that expectation up front is how you avoid the panicked price cut later.
One caveat, stated plainly. This is a 25-year median across a whole region, so it's a base rate, not a promise about your street. A well-priced home in a tight ZIP can sell in a weekend in any month, and an overpriced one can sit all spring. Timing tilts the odds. Pricing still decides the outcome.
These numbers come from Momentum Research, computed from realMLS data across Northeast Florida's seven counties, 2001 to 2026. Want to know how your own month and neighborhood stack up? That's a quick conversation. Reach me at jon@movewithmomentum.com.
People also ask
What is the best month to list a home in Northeast Florida?
April. Across 594,356 realMLS listings from 2001 to 2026, homes listed in April went under contract in a median of 34 days, the fastest of any month. March and May are close behind.
What is the slowest month to sell a home in Northeast Florida?
November. Homes listed in November took a median of 49 days to go under contract, about 44 percent longer than April listings. September and October are nearly as slow. November has been the slowest listing month in seven of the last twelve years.
Does the month I list really change how fast my home sells?
Yes. Based on 25 years of realMLS data across Northeast Florida's seven counties, spring listings sell in the low-to-mid 30s of days while fall listings take over 40. The pattern held through the 2008 crash and the 2021 boom. Pricing still matters most, but list timing tilts the odds.
Is fall a good time to buy a home in Northeast Florida?
For buyers, yes. Homes listed in the fall take the longest to sell, so more of them cut price and more sellers are open to negotiating. Buyers also face less competition than in the spring.
- Jon Brooks, Co-Founder, Momentum Realty / jon@movewithmomentum.com
This article summarizes Momentum Research analysis of realMLS data and includes Jon Brooks's opinions. It is for general informational purposes only and is not financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Regional statistics are never a price or a timeline for any specific home. Data deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Consult a licensed professional about your situation.