These are all great questions to ask. Let’s start from the Seller’s perspective.
First, it’s always a good time to list your house. With historically low inventories and the need for people to buy (new jobs, financial reasons, changes in the family structure) there are always buyers looking.
Second, most people are not in favor of moving in the winter months due to challenging weather conditions, for the reasons listed earlier, there may not be a choice. Consider an employer who wants a new team member on board to start the new year, that employer wants their employee settled so they can focus on the new job.
Third, the holidays are a wonderful time for gathering and celebrating friendships and family. With your decorations up, it gives potential homebuyers ideas on how their house could look.
Lastly, there is no doubt showings during the holidays can be inconvenient, however, buyers tend to be more serious. So instead of having numerous showings you may have less viewings with favorable results by getting your house under contract. Remember, only family can buy your house therefore you only need 1 buyer not ten.
Don’t worry, if the holidays are over and you have no offers, I’ll be happy to update the photos to reflect the “off-holiday season” at no additional expense to you. That’s just how I do business.
Let’s look currently from the buyers’ perspective. Buyers just like sellers and everyone else at this time are busy getting ready for Santa, getting holiday cards out, shopping completed, parties to attend, baking to get done etc. Need I say more. Yet, if they must be somewhere or if their dream was to be a homeowner by the end of the year, let’s get it done. Waiting until the new year puts added pressure on the buyer and the seller both. If more sellers wait until the first of the year to list their house, there will be that much more competition to get their house noticed. And if buyers have waited, more demand could bring up the prices, that’s good for the seller, bad for buyers. Overall, an increase in demand on both sides sometimes limits negotiating options. Let me explain.
If you wait to buy until the new year and the number of buyers increases, the seller may feel they do not have to negotiate things like price or inspection items. I want a win-win for both my buyers and sellers. I want everyone to be satisfied at the end of the transaction. If a seller waits for another buyer to sell their home to because they don’t want to do a few repairs, that’s not a good situation now or later.
In addition, we don’t really have a crystal ball to determine what inventories or interest rates will be in the new year. So, let’s move forward and give me a call.