A roof warranty, a survey and a list of unfinished repairs can be useful well before a house goes on the market. Bringing those details together early helps an owner decide which work to do and how much time to allow.
When to begin planning
The planning ranges here are six to twelve months for sellers and three to six months for buyers, with more time for a relocation. A conversation can begin while staying in the current home is still an option.
What the timelines look like
The National Association of REALTORS surveys buyers and sellers every year. In the 2025 profile, the typical buyer searched for ten weeks before going under contract. The typical seller had lived in the home for eleven years, a record. In the Indiana communities I cover, a listed home went under contract in anywhere from about twelve days to about a month in July 2026, depending on the town.
The search and time under contract are only part of a moving schedule. Repairs, document gathering and decisions about belongings may need to begin before either stage.
Sellers: six to twelve months
For a home occupied for a decade, preparation may include repairs, presentation and paperwork such as the survey, deck permits and roof warranty. Six months can provide time to organize the work and obtain estimates. A year provides more room to coordinate a listing with the household's plans.
Buyers: three to six months, longer if relocating
Before the ten-week search described in the survey, buyers may need to compare financing and define their housing requirements. A relocating household also needs time to research unfamiliar communities. Starting three months out rather than three weeks can leave more of the house-hunting trip available for suitable properties.
The undecided: now
A household still deciding whether to move can consider staying, changing the layout and buying elsewhere. The Symbio Index page describes how that comparison between the home and the way the household lives is made.
Putting the work on a calendar
An early conversation can help put the repair budget, family plans and possible listing dates on the same calendar. In the 2025 profile, 91 percent of sellers used an agent and only 5 percent sold on their own, the lowest share recorded. Those figures describe the survey's sellers, rather than prescribing a timetable for another household.
Related reading: Areas We Serve; Symbio Index.
Sources: National Association of REALTORS, 2025 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers; Indiana Association of REALTORS Housing Hub, July 2026, township figures for the nine communities I cover. All read at source, September 2026.