Yes!!!! It is finally here. By now, you have dusted off your Uggs, ordered pumpkin spice everything, you’re checking the Christmas list and checking it twice. The lawn is now dormant. The trails are now blending in with the rest of the surroundings due to the falling leaves. It is typically dark around 6 pm and temperatures are barely hovering in the 50s. One might assume that I am referring to the fall, but for many potential sellers, this is also the dreaded “slow season!”
The majority of these sellers base the notion that the slow season is a bad time to sell on a few myths;
1. Historically, October through February are the slowest months of the year for real estate.
2. With guests and travel, it’s more inconvenient to sell during the Holidays.
3. Their home will sell for less and remain on the market far longer than during the “hot” season
There are other reasons why sellers opt not to sell, but these are the most common. The weather may be colder and the days shorter, but the fall/winter seasons are prime seasons for selling your home. Here’s why:
1. Quarter 4 of 2017 saw a decrease in homes listed from Q3 (269/413) while there were 327 new pending sales during the final quarter. This reduction in inventory is a key indicator that it is still very much a seller’s market and at the end of the 2nd quarter of 2018, the supply was still 3 months.
2. Holiday travel and guests can, in fact, be a seller’s inconvenience. With technology, however, showings can be scheduled when they best fit into the seller’s schedule. Knowing your schedule and communicating that with your real estate agent ahead of time, will help reduce the stress of showings. Leaving your home show ready and having a local realtor that can help with showings will only make it easier for the seller during this time of year.
3. Homes sold at 99% of list price on average in Q4 of 2017. This was the same in the previous quarter during the “hot selling season.” There was a small increase (9 days) in days on market, but sellers saw no decrease in sales price.
In short, before you put off selling your home during this year’s “slow season” for the more competitive market, talk to a licensed real estate professional about your home’s potential to be on someone’s holiday wish list.